


Watching Me Fall

by Dont_touch_the_phlebotinum



Series: The Same Deep Water As You [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-16
Updated: 2013-07-03
Packaged: 2017-12-05 11:31:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 34,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/722795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dont_touch_the_phlebotinum/pseuds/Dont_touch_the_phlebotinum
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Loki is released from his prison on Asgard, he and Tony are free to attempt having a conventional relationship. If that wasn't hard enough, there's the little issue of the Avengers' reaction to Tony's new beau, and new threats creeping out of the woodwork to make life even more difficult for Tony & co.<br/>The not-so-long awaited sequel to If Only Tonight We Could Sleep.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Tony’s head swam as he breathed in the musty scent of his new surroundings. His vision was hazy, but he could still make out the dirt floor getting closer and closer until his body made contact with it. He didn’t dare move again for fear of upsetting his churning stomach – this would already go down as his most embarrassing entrance without the surprise reappearance of his dinner.

“You took your time.”

His eyes snapped back open and Tony couldn’t hold in his smile, his nausea forgotten as he scrambled over to join Loki. He’d finally done it. After so long trying to coax enough power from the Infinity gem to transport him to Asgard, Tony was finally, _finally_ here.

“It took me over a week just to get from my living room to the parking garage,” he said as he sat back to take in the sight of Loki. He looked good, better than he had during his stay on Earth months before, at any rate – he was less gaunt, the dark circles were gone from below his eyes and his scars had almost completely faded. But there was something almost guarded in his expression as he stared back at Tony, and Tony felt a familiar doubt returning to the forefront of his mind.

Every time Thor had left Earth for Asgard over the past few months Tony had given him messages to deliver to Loki, and every time Thor returned he had no word in response. It was enough to kick-start the dread that kept Tony awake at night, whispers that maybe Loki didn’t feel the same way as Tony after all. He always dismissed it as paranoia, but now he was sitting here in front of Loki it was starting to seem more plausible.

“How are you?”

“As well as I can be, considering.” Loki tugged his arm forward to reveal long chains connecting his wrists to the wall behind him.

“They got Thanos out of your head, then?” Tony had no idea how they’d managed to do that. Loki had been in seriously bad shape last time Tony saw him, Thanos’ grip reaching deep into his mind after he helped the Avengers stop Thanos collecting all of the Infinity gems, and yet here he was, good as new. Score one for Asgardian healthcare.

“Eventually,” he said. “He still snakes his way inside at times, but it’s bearable. Have there been any more attacks?”

“Not from Thanos.”

He was about the only person who wasn’t trying to kill them, though. Tony had expected anyone wanting to cause trouble to be scared off after seeing the Avengers take down Thanos and his army, but instead it seemed to have encouraged them to try their luck. Barely a week went by without the team having to stop another attempt to take over the city, and it was exhausting trying to keep up with it all.

Tony could only hope there wasn’t another attack tonight. He was a little out of range to be called back in, and he hadn’t exactly mentioned to the others he’d be spending the evening visiting his secret fling on another planet.

“I didn’t think you would come,” Loki said.

“Why wouldn’t I?”

He shrugged. “Thor told me you were struggling to control the gem. I always thought he was just trying to spare my feelings.”

Tony leant forward to press a soft kiss to Loki’s lips, his face splitting into a warm smile when Tony pulled away. “I’ve missed you like crazy, Loki.”

“Can’t find anyone willing to replace me in your bed?”

“Are you kidding? I’m beating them off with a stick,” Tony scoffed. “But once you’ve been with a god, no-one else compares.”

Loki’s grin faltered slightly as Tony spoke, their teasing over now. “You’ve had others?”

 _Shit_. Trust Tony’s big mouth to ruin their touching reunion. He’d been dreading having this conversation.

“One,” he admitted. “I was drunk.”

That was putting it lightly. Things had been getting to him, and the stresses of juggling his responsibilities as Tony Stark: CEO and Tony Stark: Iron Man did nothing to distract from how much he’d been missing Loki. But they did do a stellar job of sending him to the bottom of a bottle. So when he spotted a pale, dark haired man with bright eyes and killer cheekbones eyeing him from the other end of the bar, Tony didn’t think twice before taking him home.

It had been a horrible disappointment, though Tony doubted he’d performed much better after knocking back so many drinks. He had vague memories of calling the guy Loki all night, which would have raised a few questions if he was drinking with his teammates, as they’d taken to doing after a rough day. But the guy didn’t care, so eager to please that he would have let Tony say or do anything to him. That only made the distinction clearer. Tony had wished the guy would take control or call Tony out on his shameless posturing – anything so he could pretend he really was spending the night with Loki again.

“I totally understand if you’re mad at me...“

Loki finally met Tony’s eyes again. He forced a smile, but there was no happiness in the expression this time. “It’s not my place to dictate how you live your life.”

“Well if this is an actual thing here between us, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to expect me to not sleep with someone else at the first chance,” Tony said.

“I can’t say I would have resisted the temptation myself, given the opportunity.”

“So we’re okay?” Loki bunched a fist in Tony’s t-shirt and pulled him forward to kiss him again. That’d be a yes, then.

“I’ve missed you, Tony.”

Tony grinned and settled himself next to Loki. The pair sat talking, Tony filling Loki in on everything that had happened since he left Earth until the need for sleep started to weigh on him and he drifted off against Loki’s shoulder.

“Tony,” Loki whispered, “it’s almost dawn.”

Tony forced an eye open, confused for a moment until he recognised his strange surroundings. He looked up at the small window to see a hint of colour in the dark sky. _Time to go._

“See you tonight?”

“I’ll clear my schedule,” Loki said with a grin.

Tony kissed him again and reached for the space gem. He really hoped his last success wasn’t a fluke. As much as he’d love to spend more time with Loki, being stuck in a dungeon on another planet didn’t sound overly appealing. He focused his thoughts on home and eventually felt the tug in his belly that he’d noticed before, as Loki’s body disappeared from his side and he smelt the familiar air of his penthouse.

It was a good thing he’d been sitting on the floor when he left Loki. His legs felt like rubber, and he was sure if he’d had anything to eat since yesterday he wouldn’t have been able to keep it down this time. He lay back on the hard floor and squeezed his eyes shut tighter to block out more of the spring morning light.

“Welcome back, sir,” Jarvis said.

“Did I miss anything while I was gone?”

“Captain Rogers and Dr. Banner wished to invite you to the movies yesterday evening. I told them you were feeling under the weather. You have also been called to a team meeting at 9:30 this morning.”

“Thanks,” Tony said as he sat back up. He climbed into the shower before heading down to his workshop to finish organising which things could be shipped back to his newly rebuilt home in California. Since nearly everything in the house had been destroyed, it was easier to take what he wouldn’t need in the tower until he could replace everything. Tony wouldn’t be able to move back in until the Avengers weren’t needed in New York so often, but it couldn’t hurt to be ready in advance.

He barely listened during the meeting. Something about new protocols for bringing in the wannabe supervillains they stopped, since the detention level was filling up fast. Tony didn’t need to know. That was one of the great things about being part of a team; there was always someone to pick up the slack when Tony had other things on his mind.

That was often, granted, though Tony felt especially restless now. Finally seeing Loki again hadn’t affected how much Tony still missed having him around. It wasn’t just the sex he longed for – he hated heading to his workshop knowing it’d be empty, knowing there’d be no-one to vent his frustrations or boast about his successes to. Sure, he was surrounded by yes men who’d tell him anything he wanted to hear just to be in the esteemed company of the famous Tony Stark, but Loki was different. Loki was more honest with Tony than almost anyone else he knew, and routinely unimpressed by Tony’s talents, status and accomplishments, so when he gave Tony a compliment, Tony didn’t take it lightly.

He forced himself to get through the day as best he could, distracted from his work on  devising an improved version of Rhodey’s Iron Patriot suit by thoughts of Loki. Was this going to be his life now? Drifting aimlessly through his days until he could visit Loki’s prison again? Somehow, he didn’t see that working out long-term.

But there’d be time for those thoughts later. Tony wolfed down some leftover Chinese food without tasting it, and plunged a hand under the neckline of his t-shirt to retrieve the soul gem from its chain. He squeezed his eyes shut and prayed his stomach would behave itself during the journey.

Loki was waiting for him with a grin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the lovely comments on If Only Tonight We Could Sleep. If there's anything you want to know about the series, you can always find me lurking on tumblr at dont-touch-the-phlebotinum.tumblr.com


	2. Chapter 2

It took a few days for Tony to get used to travelling with the gem. The nausea settled down and he stopped feeling so weak after his trips, leaving him free to fully enjoy his nights in Loki’s company. He’d have hell to face from Fury if anything happened while he was out of reach, but luckily the city stayed quiet. Hopefully things were starting to get back to normal and the thought of what he was missing on Earth wouldn’t stay in the back of Tony’s mind whenever he was with Loki.

It wasn’t long before they were found out. Tony just wished they hadn’t been in such a compromising position when it happened. Pants around their thighs, Tony’s hand worked them both as they moaned and panted, aching with need, and their attention only shifted from each other when the heavy door scraped open and a guard stood illuminated by the flaming torch on the wall outside.

“The All-Father demands your presence,” he said, his expression blank as the pair frantically tucked themselves away. Shit. Tony had been so close, too.

Loki stood silently and Tony followed his lead, waiting with apprehension as Loki was released from his chains. The guard didn’t bother to bind Tony’s hands behind his back like he had with Loki, which was a slight relief. Surely if the pair were in serious trouble Tony would have been restrained as well. Though if Tony did try anything no doubt he’d be dead within seconds. He wasn’t much of a threat on a realm of gods.

Loki’s face was unreadable as they were led through dank corridors and up long flights of stairs. That didn’t sit well with Tony. He was used to not really knowing what was going on in Loki’s head, but he’d become pretty good at picking up the little hints in Loki’s tone and expression. Right now there was nothing Tony could recognise.

He was soon distracted when they stepped into the main part of the building. Candlelight reflected off golden surfaces, filling the impossibly large hall with light even at this late hour, and everything Tony’s gaze passed over looked ornate. The whole room was a work of art. There was more of the same splendour to be found in the next hall they entered. The space was cavernous, larger than any place Tony had ever stepped foot, but before he could fully take in the sight he noticed the man sitting in an elaborate throne with Thor stood at his side.

Thor smiled at Tony and Loki as they climbed the steps towards the throne, though Tony caught the hint of worry in his eyes. _So neither Thor nor Loki have a good idea what’s about to happen_ , he thought. _That’s reassuring._

“I am Odin All-Father,” the old man said to Tony. “It is nice to officially meet you, Tony Stark.”

Tony nodded. He couldn’t quite remember how to form words.

“Asgard is not a place for your kind. I think a more permanent solution to this matter is needed, is it not?” Odin turned his gaze to Loki. “Thor has made the case for your return to Midgard.”

Loki’s eyes widened and he glanced at Thor. Tony was just as surprised. He knew Thor was championing the great love affair of Tony & Loki, and he had promised to try and shorten Loki’s imprisonment if he could, but Tony never expected it to really happen. Loki had crossed too many lines for Asgard to release him just for the sake of his love life.

“You truly care for each other?” Odin continued.

“Yes,” Loki said, his voice quiet. He didn’t sound nervous, yet the self-confidence Tony knew so well was missing from his tone. Odin smiled as he looked down at Loki before addressing Tony again.

“If Thor’s words are true and you possess a stabilising influence over my son, I would be prepared to release him into your care, if that is what you both wish.” At the baffled expression on Loki’s face, he said, “I would rather see you rehabilitated than imprisoned. What say you?”

“Yes,” Loki said again, and Tony nodded as Odin looked to him next. Loki would undoubtedly mock him for being so uncharacteristically tongue-tied as soon as they were alone. Even Thor was amused by Tony’s silence.

“It is settled then. Retire to your former chambers tonight. They remain as you left them. The two of you shall return to Midgard tomorrow.”

They turned to head back down the steps to where the guard waited to escort them.

“The gem is not to return with you,” Odin called after them, and Tony pulled its chain from around his neck. He’d forgotten all about it. Thor stepped forward to take the gem from Tony, handing it back to Odin before following Tony and Loki from the room.

“Leave us,” he said to the guard once they were back in the grand hallway. The guard quickly freed Loki’s hands and scurried away in silence, leaving the three of them to make their way to Loki’s room.

“What did you say to the All-Father?”

“I told him you cared deeply for the human and that he was instrumental in keeping you from trouble on Earth during your stay. He was not easily convinced, until Tony came to Asgard.”

“Why?”

“I made a promise, and I did not intend to break it.”

They arrived at a set of tall double doors, a heavy chain wrapped through the handles. Loki raised an eyebrow at Thor.

“I knew you would not want anything to have been moved upon your return,” Thor explained as he unwound the chains. He pushed the doors open and Tony stepped inside, marvelling once again at the sight that greeted him.

Loki’s bedroom was less extravagant than the other rooms Tony had seen. There was more of a natural, earthy sense to the majesty, all thick wooden furniture and rich colours. Candles still burned throughout the room, despite it staying sealed for what had to have been years now, the light glinting off the occasional dagger nestled between unfamiliar trinkets.

Loki’s voice sounded from behind Tony. “What made you believe I ever would return?”

“You’re here now, are you not?”

Tony glanced back to see Loki smirk at Thor before taking a step through the doorway.

“Thank you.”

Thor’s face lit up like a kid on Christmas morning at Loki’s words. “Sleep well,” he replied, nodding at Tony and making his way further down the corridor.

“This is... regal,” Tony said once the doors were closed. His grasp of the English language hadn’t fully recovered yet, though even if it had Tony doubted he could find the right words to describe anything he saw around him.

“I am still a prince, technically.” Loki’s voice was muffled as he stripped off his grubby clothes, revealing skin that didn’t look much cleaner. For the first time since Loki dropped into Bruce’s lab almost half a year ago, Tony didn’t even think to stop and enjoy the view. He could appreciate the beauty of the male form later – being in Asgard was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

“I like that in a man,” he replied.

Loki just rolled his eyes and crossed through an archway at the other end of the room, leaving Tony to explore. His first stop was the large bookcase crammed full of ancient-looking, leather bound tomes. He flipped through a few, careful not to damage the delicate pages, before moving on to inspect the vast array of what he assumed were ingredients for spells littering the table.

It was a struggle not to touch anything. Tony was sure Loki could reverse it if he accidently turned himself into a frog or something, though it wasn’t a risk he was willing to take. In the end he settled for collapsing onto the bed to keep his hands under control.

And God, was he glad he did. Tony had never felt anything so comfortable in his life. It was almost as if he was being absorbed into the mattress, and his mind flashed back to every cheesy horror film he’d ever seen where some poor unfortunate gets devoured by a possessed bed. It was a surprisingly large number, come to think of it. He wouldn’t even care if it happened to him. It’d definitely be the best way to go.

Tony’s eyelids drooped and he began to drift off until he heard Loki’s voice above him and breathed in the crisp scent of his clean skin.

“Don’t fall asleep, Tony. I’m not finished with you yet.”

Tony rolled over to lie on his front and raised his hips off the bed slightly. “Do what you want to me, just don’t make me move off this bed.”

Loki chuckled and soft lips brushed the back of Tony’s neck, sensation tingling across his body at the touch as his blood began creeping south. Loki could be so persuasive at times.

“I had hoped you’d be a little more enthusiastic than that,” Loki breathed against Tony’s ear as he worked open Tony’s jeans. Tony let out a low moan when Loki’s fingers slid under the waistband of his boxers.

“You’re a terrible influence,” he said, twisting round to kiss Loki.

Loki grinned. “You love it.”

***

Tony fell asleep almost immediately after they had both found their release. Loki lay watching him for a moment before forcing himself off the bed, fighting to keep his tired eyes open as he abandoned the comfort of the soft mattress. It had been years since he’d slept in his own bed, but if this was to be his last night in Asgard, there were things he wished to savour more than sleep.

He didn’t bother to dress before stepping out onto his balcony. The night was warm, summer signalling its early arrival, and at this hour there was little worry of prying eyes. Loki looked up at the stars and distant galaxies and felt a pang of sadness at the thought that he wouldn’t see them once he returned to Earth. It was strange; he had spent plenty of time away from Asgard in recent years and there was little tethering him to this realm anymore, yet it still pained him to think of leaving. As much as Asgard had become tainted in his eyes, could there really be anything better awaiting him on Earth?

There was a quiet knock at the door. Loki slipped on some clean clothes and crossed the room, feeling like a child again as he thought of all the times he had done this in his youth. It had been a regular occurrence, the faint rap of knuckles long after everyone had fallen asleep, and Thor’s grinning face on the other side of the door as the pair stole away to explore every place they had been told not to venture.

But it was not Thor who stood waiting for Loki this time.

“Walk with me,” Odin said. Loki spared one last glance at Tony’s sleeping form and stepped from the room. They wandered in silence for long minutes. There was much Loki was eager to say, yet he held his tongue and finally Odin spoke again.

“This is not the life I imagined for you,” he said, “though I am not surprised you are the one who would choose to carve out his own path. I only pray you have chosen the right one.”

Loki stayed silent. He knew the All-Father hadn’t roused him so late just to tell him this. They gazed out at the sprawling lands below, reflected moonlight shimmering across the water, lights still burning in the tavern where Thor and Loki had once crept inside and made themselves sick on mead far too strong for their young stomachs. He smiled at the memory until his eyes travelled to the Bifrost and he thought of the last time he had stood in this spot watching it.

No, he could not remain in Asgard. His good memories would always be drowned out by the bad.

“The Bifrost will forever be open to you,” Odin continued. “However, do not mistake being released as having the freedom to do as you wish.”

“I should consider this my probation, then?”

“That is a good a way as any to look at it. Heimdall will pay great attention to you on Midgard, Loki – if you return to your old ways you will not be allowed to remain with the human. It pains me to say it, but there can be no more second chances for you.”

“I understand.”

Odin nodded and laid a hand on Loki’s shoulder. “Then go,” he said, “get some rest. We will speak again in the morning.”

Tony was curled in bed facing the door when Loki slipped back into his chambers. He opened an eye as Loki joined him. “Where’ve you been?”

“Go back to sleep,” Loki said, planting a soft kiss on Tony’s cheek. “You’ll need to be well-rested for the morning. I fear you’ll like travelling on the Bifrost even less than the gem.”

Tony groaned.


	3. Chapter 3

Tony woke up in Loki’s bed alone. That wasn’t anything new, but he thought he’d at least find Loki still in bed with him when he had nowhere else to disappear to. He sat up with difficulty, his body protesting being separated from the mattress, and scanned the room for Loki. He found him on the balcony, sat on the balustrade with one leg thrown over the other side as he quietly munched on an apple.

“Morning,” Tony said. “How’d you sleep?”

“You snored all night, kept trying to hold me against you and drooled on me when I gave up trying to escape your embrace.”

“Oh don’t pretend you didn’t enjoy it,” he chuckled. With a wistful look at the bed, he crossed the room to join Loki on the balcony. “This place is incredible. I’m guessing there’s no chance of a guided tour, huh?”

“I imagine we’ll be leaving as soon as the others have roused themselves and fed.”

Tony pouted. He would have loved to explore, but he had a feeling he wouldn’t want to leave again if he did. Something seriously awful must have happened to turn Loki off the place so bad – from what Tony had seen Asgard was a paradise, though he didn’t doubt there was darkness lurking behind all that shining gold.

Speaking of which, Loki had just raised his apple again to take another bite, and Tony took a good look at the fruit for the first time. “Is that..?”

“Would you like some?” Loki replied, holding out the half-eaten apple to offer to Tony. He took it gingerly and inspected the golden skin before sinking his teeth into it.

“Oh my god.” It was amazing, sweeter than any apple Tony had tasted, and he eagerly helped himself to another bite. Juices trickled down his hand and he lapped them up before catching Loki watching him with amusement.

“Keep it,” he said, swinging his leg back onto the ground and stepping inside to grab a bread roll from the tray of food on the table. Tony hadn’t even stirred when it was brought in. He was starting to suspect some kind of enchantment on that bed. He never slept so soundly.

They finished their food in silence, Tony too busy gawping at the fantasy realm he’d stumbled into to think of anything to say. He felt like he was in Lord of the Rings or something. If he saw one person with pointy ears he was going to have an aneurysm. Loki was watching him again when he turned back.

“What?”

“I’m just admiring the hair,” he said with a smirk. “It’s a good look.”

Tony ran his fingers through his hair. Okay, yeah, it was a complete mess, flattened against his head on one side with errant strands shooting in all directions. He tried to fix it as best he could with just his fingers and no mirror in sight. It didn’t make much of an improvement.

“Hey, I can pull this off. Besides, I bet you’ve been up for hours getting all that hair to behave itself.”

Loki chuckled. His mood had definitely improved since leaving the dungeons, even if he was still technically a prisoner on Asgard. Tony could only hope he’d be even happier once they got back to Earth. He hooked a finger through the front of Loki’s tunic and kissed him.

“Your breath is terrible,” Loki said, wrinkling his nose as he pushed Tony back a step, though he couldn’t completely mask his smile. Tony seized Loki’s face in his hands, holding him still to swipe his tongue across Loki’s cheek in retaliation as Loki cried out and squirmed from Tony’s grip.

“Am I interrupting?”

The pair glanced back to see Thor stood in the doorway, fighting to keep his apologetic expression in place.

“No,” Loki said as he pulled away from Tony and scrubbed his wet cheek. He headed back into the bedroom, frowning at Thor when he helped himself to some bread.

“Tony, have you fed?” Thor said between bites.

“I’m not really a fan of solid breakfasts.” Thor held the tray out for him and Tony forced himself to eat the last roll, rejecting Thor’s offerings of cheese and fruit to go with it.

“Gather everything you wish to take with you, Loki,” Thor said. “Father will see us off shortly.”

“You’re coming back too?” Tony gurgled around a mouthful of painfully sweet-tasting wine. He could practically feel the cavities forming as he swallowed.

“Indeed. The All-Father has requested I stay on Earth until Loki is settled.”

Loki rolled his eyes. “I am quite capable of getting by without your assistance. Or have you been asked to observe me to ensure I keep my side of the bargain?”

Thor met Loki’s eyes without offering a response and Loki scowled. He pulled some clothes out of an ornate chest of drawers and gave the room a quick once-over before he said, “There’s nothing here I can’t live without.”

“Very well,” Thor replied as he nodded to Tony and headed back towards the door. “Someone will fetch you when we are ready to depart.”

With that, Tony and Loki were alone again, though the relaxed, light-hearted atmosphere was well and truly over. Tony never really knew what to say when Loki was on edge like this. He could handle Loki’s volatile turns easy enough with a dumb joke and a kiss, but when he was like this, all quiet tension and unexploded anger, Tony was left to wait awkwardly until it passed.

“You okay?”

Loki sighed and flashed Tony a reassuring smile. “They have every reason to be wary,” he shrugged.

“Be honest, do you really want them to trust you?”

“No, I suppose not,” Loki said. “Though when it could affect my release I have a little more cause for concern.”

The knock at the door came a few minutes later and they were escorted to the Bifrost, Tony trying to keep his jaw from falling open the whole way as Loki tried to keep from laughing at him for it. Neither of them managed particularly well.

Odin and Thor were waiting for them again, Thor escorting Tony inside the vast golden dome to let Odin and Loki talk.

“Nervous?” Thor said.

“Should I be?”

“You are possibly the first mortal to journey on the Bifrost – it is difficult to estimate how taxing the trip will be for you. Though I doubt it would be too much worse than your travel with the space gem.”

Great. The space gem was hardly a walk in the park. But Tony sucked it up and braced himself as Loki rejoined him and the walls around them began to spin faster and faster until Tony felt himself being sucked forward. They were on the roof of Avengers tower the next moment.

Tony doubled over, winded, and Loki’s hand curled under his elbow to keep him from falling completely. “I hate travelling with magic,” he wheezed.

“You’ll get used to it.”

“I don’t think I want to.” He straightened and opened his eyes to see Thor and Loki both staring at him as if he might drop dead any second. “Guys, I’m fine.”

“You feel no pain?” Thor said.

“Well I kinda feel like my internal organs have been rearranged–“ Two pairs of eyes widened at that and Tony sighed. “That was a joke. I hope. I don’t know about you two, but I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t be standing if it wasn’t. My inferior, squishy human body has survived your stupid bridge.”

“Excellent.” The word had barely left Thor’s mouth before he was halfway across the roof heading towards the door to the building. Loki strode after him, his hand still on Tony’s elbow dragging him along too.

“I will be in my chambers if you need me,” Thor said as Tony and Loki stepped out of the elevator into Tony’s penthouse. He looked like he wanted to say more, but he let the doors close on him without another word. And with that, Tony and Loki were alone once again. They stared at each other in silence for a moment, neither of them sure how to proceed.

“So...” Tony started. He had yet to come up with an end to that sentence.

“So,” confirmed Loki.

“I’m gonna take a shower. Make yourself at home, I guess.”

Tony froze when he caught sight of himself in the bathroom mirror. He looked fantastic. He could never be considered modest by any stretch of the word, but it was striking how much better he looked than usual. His skin was perfectly clear – hell, he was practically glowing – the hints of wrinkles that had begun to emerge on his aging face disappeared and the stray flecks of grey in his hair returned to their natural dark brown.

“Freaking Asgard,” he said to himself with a smile as he stepped under the warm stream of water.

Loki was sat on the couch when Tony returned to the main room. He didn’t react to Tony plonking himself down beside him, his eyes still gazing blankly at the building opposite.

“What’s with the pensive face?”

“Hmm?”

“You.” Tony prodded him and Loki finally turned to meet Tony’s eyes. “What’s up?”

“Nothing.”

_Clearly_. Tony was starting to think that ‘God of Lies’ title was a little generous. “Tell me.”

“I’m just...” He trailed off, his brows knitting even closer together while he gathered his thoughts. “I just wonder what my place is now.”

“Now you can’t misbehave?” Loki shrugged and Tony fought a chuckle threatening to bubble up from his chest. “Well what did you with your time before you decided murder and chaos was a fun hobby?”

“Mostly I cleaned up Thor’s messes. Between that and my duties in the court, I didn’t have a great deal of time to pursue other interests. Besides causing mischief, of course.”

“There’s always time for that, huh?”

“Exactly.”

“You could join the Avengers,” Tony said after a moment.

That raised a laugh, until Loki noticed the sincerity in Tony’s face and his smile disappeared. “You can’t be serious.”

“Why not? You get to satisfy your urge for destruction and we get a kick-ass, immortal sorcerer on the team. It’s a win-win.”

“And I’m sure your teammates would be overjoyed at the suggestion. Besides,” he said, inching closer towards Tony as he spoke, “isn’t mixing business and pleasure supposed to be a bad thing?”

“I think we’re long past worrying about that.” Tony threaded his fingers through Loki’s hair and pulled him closer to kiss him. Loki’s thoughtful expression returned as soon as they parted. “We can figure all this out later, Loki. First thing we need to do is sort out this,” he said, gesturing at Loki’s clothes.

“What’s wrong with my clothes?”

“You see many guys walking around rocking the 18th Century peasant look? And before you say it, the hell for leather outfit isn’t an improvement.”

“You expect me to blend in with your kind?” He sounded insulted by the very suggestion.

“Honey, it’s gonna take more than a change of outfit to keep you from standing out in a crowd.”

Loki smiled, satisfied for now, and the pair settled back into the couch until Tony broke the silence.

“What about us? I mean, are we actually, like, a couple now? ‘Cause fair warning, I don’t have a whole lot of experience in that department.”

“No,” Loki said, “neither do I. I suppose we could just carry on as we were before.”

“What, no emotions; no sticking around after sex; pretending we really hate each other?” None of that sounded very appealing to Tony anymore.

“We could revise those terms of the arrangement. Though I’m not about to start making love to you,” he added.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Sir, the emergency protocols–“ Jarvis interrupted, but he was cut off just as the elevator doors opened. _Shit. Shit, shit, shit_. Tony knew he should have never agreed to those. They gave S.H.I.E.L.D. the ability to override Jarvis if the need arose, which of course meant Nick Fury could barge his way into Tony’s penthouse if he declared it an emergency.

“Where the hell were you last–” He took one look at Tony and Loki still curled together on the couch and froze.

_This is bad. This is so, so fucking bad_. Tony knew he would have had to tell people about him and Loki at some point, but he’d hoped to have a little bit of time to prepare, at least. There was no way this was going to go well.

“I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing,” Fury said to Loki, “but it ends right now. Whatever you’ve done to him, reverse it. Then get out.”

“I’ve not done anything,” Loki growled, sidling away from the couch to give himself an open space if he and Fury came to blows. It was looking pretty likely at this point. Fury’s hand was already on his gun holster, though he had to know shooting Loki would just piss him off even more.

“You think I’m stupid enough to believe that?”

“Yes, actually, but in this case it’s the truth. Come now, Fury, you know what Tony’s like. All I had to do was flash him a few smiles and he was begging me to take him to bed.”

“Loki!” Tony snapped. This was so not helping. He was on his feet as well now, moving closer to Loki to hold him back if necessary. Not that it would do much to ease the situation. Fury’s gun was out, aiming at Loki’s chest, but of course that only made Loki’s smile grow wider.

“We have ways of getting the truth from you,” Fury warned. He took a step closer. They were less than three feet apart now, Fury scowling as Loki’s face twisted into a feral snarl.

“I was tortured for _months_ , by creatures far more terrifying than you. And I picked up a few tricks myself. Would you like me to demonstrate?”

“Okay, that’s enough!” Tony threw all his weight against Loki’s chest until Loki finally relented, taking a step backwards without breaking the death glare he had going with Fury. Tony could feel Loki’s heart pounding in his chest. He knew the only reason Fury was still alive was because sticking to the terms of his release was more important to Loki than killing him.

“Loki, come on,” Tony whispered. Loki’s expression softened when he looked down at Tony, but he was still seething, his body tense under Tony’s fingers. “Give us a minute, would you?”

Loki glanced back up, though he did as Tony asked, storming into the bedroom with one last scowl at Fury. Tony had no doubt he was on the other side of the door listening.

“I know this looks bad,” Tony said without looking at Fury. He didn’t really want to be facing him for this conversation. “He’s changed.”

“People like Loki do not change. He may be sweetness and light now, but he will turn.” He sighed. “Do I even have to ask how long this has been going on?”

Of course he didn’t. He’d been the first to suspect Loki was sneaking around with someone at S.H.I.E.L.D. It couldn’t have been more than an hour after Tony and Loki had first slept together that Fury was in Tony’s living room, asking him to find the person Loki had compromised. Tony stayed silent.

“Jesus, Tony, I thought you of all people would be smart enough to see the danger in fraternising with Loki.”

“Guess not,” Tony said. He could understand Fury’s shock and anger, he really could, but things were different. Okay, Loki was still kind of a dick, though compared to how he was the first time he came to Earth he was practically saintlike now. Besides, Tony kind of liked Loki’s arrogance, even if he did suspect it was just a cover half the time.

“He can’t stay.”

Tony spun around. “He can’t stay. In my tower. That I built. That your organisation hijacked.”

“Damn straight. And if you’re really prepared to choose the guy who murdered hundreds of people two years ago over this team then you can follow him out that door.”

“Are you kidding? You wanna kick me out of my own home.”

“I don’t want to. But you’re a loose cannon, Stark. Always have been. I’ll do what’s necessary to protect my team. Loki has to go.”

What the hell was Tony going to do? He couldn’t just send Loki packing, even if he wanted to. But if his relationship with the other Avengers was at stake... They’d had their share of problems in the past, though recently they’d been doing better than ever, working flawlessly as a team and taking out enemies without any trouble, as well as getting along like old friends outside of work. He didn’t want to walk away from that. And surely they wouldn’t let Fury kick him off the team.

Yet he couldn’t be certain. Thor would be on his and Loki’s side ‘til the end, and Bruce would probably come round to the idea once the shock wore off, but the others? Clint and Natasha would never trust Loki, and Steve was far too noble to accept Tony sleeping with a former adversary. Tony couldn’t count on their support.

“Loki has to stay. He’s sworn into my care.”

“Then you know what your last option is,” Fury said, not a hint of sympathy in his voice.

“This is my building. If anyone should go, it’s S.H.I.E.L.D.”

“And we’ll be gone as soon as we find somewhere suitable to move operations to. But until then, you are out. Consider this your termination of duty.”


	4. Chapter 4

Fury stood at the head of the conference table, his arms folded across his chest while the Avengers took their seats.

“Tony Stark is no longer a part of this team,” he announced. He held up his hand to silence the ripple of shocked responses. “I know you’ll have questions. I’m still trying to figure this whole thing out myself. What I do know is that Stark has been compromised. He’s with Loki.” Another quiet murmur swept around the table.

“He has to be under some kind of spell, right?” Steve said. “No way would Tony team up with Loki willingly.”

“That’s my thinking, but unless we can find a way to reverse it, we can’t trust him.”

“It is no spell,” Thor interrupted, his jaw clenched as he tried to keep his tempter under control.

Fury turned to him with a frown. “You know something about this?”

“Loki was released to be with Tony on the condition that he causes no more trouble. Their affection is no trick or scheme.”

“Wait, are you saying they’re together in the biblical sense?”

“Yes, Clint, that’s exactly what I’m saying.”

Clint wrinkled his nose at Fury’s words. “That takes scraping the barrel to a whole new level. Has Tony exhausted the human population already?”

Fury sighed before continuing. “So, you see our problem: not only is Loki back on Earth instead of locked up like he’s supposed to be–“ he shot Thor a pointed glance “–Stark has a conflict of interest that’ll spell a whole mess of problems for us if he stays on board.”

“Where is Tony now?” Bruce piped up.

“Gone. Loki too. Probably back to California, but if Loki has some secret hideout we don’t know about they could be holed up there.”

“So,” Steve asked, “how do we help him?”

“Can we not just leave them be?” Thor was perched on the edge of his seat now, ready to spring to his feet the moment his anger boiled over. Fury wasn’t fazed though.

“I’m sorry, Thor, but it’s gonna take more than your word to convince me that Tony would shack up with _Loki_ without there being some kind of witchcraft involved. And I don’t think for a second Loki has changed his ways.”

“He has fought for you before.”

“Yes, because it suited him. What’s stopping him turning on us now?”

“If he breaks his oath he will be returned to his prison on Asgard–”

“And we all know what a high security place that is, don’t we? You think he cares about being locked away again when he knows he’ll be released in no time?” He turned to Natasha, who had yet to say a word, her lips pursed and brows knitted together. “Agent Romanoff, do you have something to say?”

“I...” She trailed off. Fury spoke again before she could finish her sentence.

“You knew about this, didn’t you?” Her silence was confirmation enough. “Is there a particular reason you neglected to report it, given you were assigned to do just that?”

“Stark said it was over.”

“And you believed him?”

“Of course not,” she said, her tone as detached as always. “But I had no proof they were still together, and Tony promised he’d deal with the situation. I thought it best to let him–”

_“Tony, turn it off.”_

Tony jumped. He hadn’t even heard Loki enter the workshop and come to stand behind him, though knowing Loki, Tony probably wouldn’t have noticed even if he hadn’t been so preoccupied. He closed down the security footage he’d had Jarvis hack into. At least with Jarvis still hooked up in Avengers tower – albeit with limited control now Tony was back in Malibu – Tony could keep tabs on what was happening with his now former teammates.

_Former teammates. I’ll never get used to that_.

“How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough.”

Tony turned to watch Loki surveying the depressingly sparse workshop. It was the first time Tony had seen him all day. He’d already been out of bed when Tony woke up that morning, and Tony headed straight downstairs without bothering to look for him. They’d barely spoken since they left the tower the day before – as much as Tony wanted to curl up in Loki’s arms and forget about everything, his desire to shut himself away and sulk was the more powerful urge at the moment. Besides, he didn’t want to scare Loki off by being too clingy now he was back. Tony would deal with this on his own, like he always did.

“You’re still Iron Man without them,” Loki said.

“I know. That’s not the problem.”

Tony’s phone rang before Loki could speak again. The display flashed up a picture of Steve frowning in confusion. He hadn’t understood why Tony was trying to take a photograph with his phone, and the resulting picture was just too amusing for Tony to bother taking another one. Tony braced himself for a lecture as he answered the call.

“Tony? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Where are you?”

“Home. California, not New York.” He didn’t know why he added that last part. Steve already knew he wasn’t in the tower.

“Yeah, I figured you were out of the state by now.” Steve paused for a second, his voice lower when he spoke again. “Is Loki with you?”

Tony sighed. _Here it comes_. “Yes,” he said briskly.

“Has he done anything to you?”

“Well that depends on what kind of things we’re talking about here.” Tony swore he could feel Steve’s distaste over the phone.

“Tony, you know we want to help you,” he said, “but if we have any chance of reversing what Loki’s done to your head–”

“He hasn’t done anything,” Tony snapped. “You want to know what really happened, Steve? I seduced him. Because I wanted him. No magic, no nefarious scheme – just lust. And now here we are. If you can’t deal with that it’s not my problem.”

The phone skittered across the table as Tony tossed it from his hand and rubbed his forehead in frustration. He hadn’t expected anything else, really, but it still hurt. _At least he’s trying to look out for me,_ he thought, yet it didn’t offer much comfort.

“Whatever you’re gonna say, don’t,” he said to Loki as he stormed out of the workshop, leaving Loki to stare after him in silence. He could hear his phone ringing again as he climbed the stairs to the living room, but the last thing he wanted to do was go back and answer it. No doubt it’d be one of the others calling to have the exact same conversation.

Tony stared at his empty liquor cabinet with disappointment. He should have remembered he’d need to restock it when they came back. “We’re going out,” he announced without bothering to make sure he wasn’t speaking to himself. He knew Loki would have followed him upstairs.

“Where?”

“To get a drink.”

***

Loki could hardly hear Tony speak over the din of music and voices. The place was not overly dissimilar from the taverns he’d frequented across the nine realms, though still Loki couldn’t help feeling out of place. The crowd was less rowdy than he was used to, but the noise and pulsing lights were more distracting than the fellow patrons had ever been back on Asgard.

Tony was slumped over the table they had claimed in the corner of the room, cradling a glass between his fingers and staring morosely at the liquid inside, his misery growing with each drink. Loki could understand his despondency. After his fall from Asgard, the pain Loki had felt at losing the love of the people he’d once thought family was almost enough to rival the agonies Thanos and the Other had inflicted upon his flesh, despite Loki’s rage at his betrayals. Though Tony had a far better relationship with his teammates than Loki had had with his family towards the end, he could relate all too well.

He reached a hand out to Tony’s, brushing his fingers softly against the warm skin. It was a strange gesture for him to make, and Loki surprised himself by offering the comfort. It had been a long time since he’d cared about another’s distress, and longer still since he’d actually wanted to help ease the pain.

“You don’t need them.”

“Yes,” Tony said, “I do.”

“Why? What do you lose without them?”

“They’re my friends, Loki.” Tony sank down further to rest his chin on his arm, his eyes still fixed on his drink.

“Is that why they cast you out?”

Tony’s jaw clenched, the first sparks of anger forming. Good. It would serve no purpose for Tony to wallow in self-pity, and the sooner his sadness turned to rage the sooner he could begin to blame the right people for his situation. His teammates had played no part in their expulsion from the tower, Loki knew, but with the exception of Thor, they would certainly come down on Fury’s side in wanting Loki gone. And if Tony was still so dejected, he would be more likely to agree to their demands.

Tony straightened, throwing his head back and letting the bronze liquid slide down his throat. “Another round?”

He got to his feet and staggered towards the bar without waiting for Loki’s response. Loki watched him go, smirking as a crowd of fawning women in varying states of intoxication swarmed around Tony. He was back a few moments later with half a dozen more drinks, though Loki had barely touched his first.

“Come on,” Tony said, pushing one of the glasses towards Loki, “drink up.” His mood seemed to have lightened somewhat, or perhaps he had just begun putting on a brave face instead. Either way, Loki returned Tony’s smile and swallowed a mouthful of his drink.

They didn’t leave until the bar closed, Tony clinging to Loki to remain upright as they walked to a secluded enough location for Loki to transport them both home. Tony collapsed onto the bed as soon as they materialised in his bedroom, tightening his grip on Loki’s clothes to drag him down as well. He caught Loki’s mouth in a sloppy kiss, writhing underneath him and letting out a small whimper when Loki pulled away, though he was asleep before he could reach out for Loki again.

***

“Sleep well?” Loki said from outside without turning to look at Tony. It always freaked Tony out a little how he could do that. Tony was barefoot, so there was no way Loki could have heard him step into the kitchen – he just seemed to know. Tony made a mental note to ask about it at some point.

“I slept fine,” he called as he made himself a cup of coffee and rooted around in search of some painkillers for his throbbing head. “It’s being awake that I’m struggling with. What time did you get up?”

“I’ve not been to bed.” Tony had figured as much. The other side of the bed (it still didn’t feel right thinking of it as Loki’s side) was undisturbed when Tony woke up, and while he wouldn’t put it past Loki to be such a neat-freak he’d tidy the bed with Tony still in it, he knew from experience Loki was above such menial tasks as bedmaking.

Loki stayed gazing up at the sky as Tony stood beside him, not even squinting at the bright sun bearing down on them. Tony sighed. It was so much easier being hungover in New York - the Malibu sunshine was doing no favours to Tony’s sensitive eyes. Though he’d only be back in New York if he hadn’t been kicked off the team, and if that was the case he wouldn’t have needed to get quite so drunk the night before.

“I didn’t know you could see the stars on Earth,” Loki said.

“In some places, yeah. The further you get from the cities the more you can see them. Less light pollution.” He gulped down a mouthful of coffee and grimaced. He really needed to find a blend that worked with the awful taste lingering in his mouth. “It doesn’t make you feel kinda insignificant?”

“No, it reminds me how much of the universe I have yet to see.” He finally looked down to smile at Tony. “I like it here. It’s less chaotic.”

“I thought you thrived on chaos.”

Loki’s smile spread into a wicked grin. Tony had wondered when he’d be seeing that expression again. He’d actually quite missed it. “Only when I’m at the centre of it.”

Tony laughed. “I gotta admit, it feels good to be home again. Except for not really having a whole lot of furniture yet.”

“Yes, I noticed that.”

“Do you mind?” Loki shook his head. He’d had worse over the past few years.

Tony finished his coffee in silence and headed downstairs, his eyes immediately landing on his phone still lying on the table where he’d left it the day before. As expected, there were half a dozen voicemails from Steve and Bruce, saying they were worried about him and asking him to call, and a poorly typed text from Thor asking how they were. He replied to Thor’s text, telling him they were both fine and that he was welcome to head to the West Coast if he wanted to keep an eye on Loki. Loki wouldn’t appreciate that last part of the message, but it would be nice to be around a friend who didn’t think there was something wrong with his head for falling for Loki.

He paused after he hit send, debating whether or not to return the calls. If it was as simple as just letting them know he was okay he wouldn’t hesitate, but as long as he was with Loki they’d never believe it, and Tony couldn’t keep defending himself again and again. He put the phone back down, though he spent the next few hours sat staring at it, whether plucking up the courage to make a call or willing it to ring he didn’t know. Either way, when Steve did finally call again he didn’t answer, switching it off as soon as the ringing stopped and shoving it in a drawer out of sight.

Loki was still in the same spot looking out at the ocean when Tony emerged later that evening.

“Have you been standing there all day?”

“Yes.”

“Oh,” Tony said. During Loki’s time back in Asgard, Tony had forgotten the little idiosyncrasies like this. Though he’d never witnessed Loki standing perfectly still for 16-odd hours before. No doubt he’d discover plenty more of Loki’s quirks as the weeks went on.

_More like months_ , he thought. _Or years. Or however long this thing will last_. He pushed that thought away. He couldn’t really imagine his future with Loki just yet. Two weeks ago he was starting to face the very real possibility that he’d never see Loki again, and now they were what, living together? He was still trying to wrap his head around it.

“How are you?” Loki said.

“Never better.” Loki shot him a sceptical look. Well, it wasn’t like Tony believed the words either. They’d be true one day, unless Fury let Tony back in before then. _Yeah, right_. That somehow felt even less likely than Tony and Loki getting together in the first place. Fury was too stubborn to accept Tony still had the team’s interests at heart, and Tony was too stubborn to let Loki go to prove it.

“So,” he continued, “you hungry?”

Loki shrugged. “I could eat.”

“Great. We have – huh,” he said as he crossed the kitchen to open the refrigerator. “Nothing. Takeout it is, then.”

 

Thor turned up on the doorstep the next day, much to Loki’s displeasure. But Tony couldn’t hear any shouting or things breaking from his position staring into space in his workshop, so he figured they were getting along better, at least. Or Loki was too busy plotting some sinister way to get rid of Thor to bother fighting with him.

They pretty much all kept to themselves as one week passed, then another. Thor would wonder down to the workshop every few hours to try and lift Tony’s spirits, eventually giving up and heading back upstairs again each time, and Tony would only drag Loki from whatever he’d taken to doing during the day to go out for a few too many drinks. They’d usually manage a drunken fumble before Tony passed out, though it was remarkable how much better he felt about things once he and Loki settled back into their old routine.

He was doing okay, in spite of everything. Things with Loki, while not exactly conventional, were working; he’d finally gotten some much needed space from S.H.I.E.L.D.; and his teammates had stopped constantly haunting his thoughts. It was still painful when he let himself think about it, or when he’d catch a glimpse of his phone still sitting untouched in his desk drawer, but he knew he’d get over it soon enough. Maybe this would all turn out to be for the best.


	5. Chapter 5

“You know, I think you were right.”

Loki glanced up from peering suspiciously at the green drink Tony had placed in front of him. “About what?”

“It’s not the end of the world. Me getting kicked out of Fury’s Angels, I mean.”

“How many times have I told you this?”

“And I should have been listening,” Tony said, his words slurring a little, but he wasn’t drunk enough to completely stop making sense yet. “I still got my suits. I’ll have my building back just as soon as Fury finds somewhere better to set up shop. They’re the ones who are screwed without me.”

That last sentence may have been an exaggeration. Really, what were they losing without Tony around? His money? S.H.I.E.L.D. had been well-funded long before Tony was brought onboard. Iron Man? The rest of the team were skilled enough to get by without Tony’s contributions. His problems with authority, inability to follow orders and tendency to make stupid, rash decisions? Yeah, they’d really be missing those.

Tony silenced those thoughts by guzzling half his beer before the sadness could overwhelm him. Drinking usually kept that darkness at bay, at least until he crawled into bed and ran out of things to distract him. Maybe it wasn’t such a coincidence that he’d drunk himself unconscious almost nightly since he left the tower.

“It’s peer pressure, really,” he continued, his thoughts back on the present, “the same schoolyard bullshit that we drill into our kids’ heads not to listen to. ‘Don’t do that or we won’t like you anymore. Follow us blindly and you’ll be one of us.’”

Loki continued to stare at Tony blankly as he rambled on. He didn’t even know what he was saying anymore really. The words just kept tumbling out of his mouth, only pausing when he took another gulp of his drink. Though since the only time he actually spoke to anyone these days was when he went out with Loki, he supposed this was just his way of making up for all the silence.

“We should form our own team! Thor would be up for it. And there’s always bad guys to stop, right?”

“That’s it,” Loki said, reaching over for Tony’s bottle, “I think you’ve had enough.”

Tony snatched his drink out of Loki’s reach and kept talking. “I could make you your own suit and–” _Shit. The suit_. He’d completely forgotten about Rhodey’s new suit. He hadn’t even looked at the plans for weeks, and he had an awful feeling the presentation of his prototype was due any day now.

He shrugged and finished his drink. There was nothing he could do about it now.

 

It turned out his presentation was due the next day. Tony was sat in his workshop as usual, though at least he’d dug out the Iron Patriot plans to do something productive with his time, when Rhodey stormed in.

“Where were you? Don’t tell me you forgot.”

Tony’s eyes widened as the realisation hit him. “It was today?”

“Yes, it was today! I tried to call to remind you, since I hadn’t even heard whether you were back yet, but your cell’s been switched off and there was no answer on the landline.”

“I’m sorry, I’ve been–”

“Busy? Yeah I’ve seen.” Rhodey tossed a newspaper onto the table in front of Tony, folded open to reveal a picture of him and Loki making out against the wall of the club they’d visited the night before. It was a good job that photographer hadn’t been there five minutes later, from what Tony could remember of how the night progressed. If they had, no way would that shot would be page 10 news, that was for sure.

“Do you know what damage that picture could do to Stark Industries? You’ve got an image to protect, Tony. It’s sad, but people will be less likely to invest in a company whose CEO has a habit of getting photographed hooking up with random guys in public.”

“For the record, he’s not just some stranger I picked up at a bar.”

Rhodey’s eyebrow twitched upwards. “Then who is he?”

“He’s, uh, Loki,” he said quickly, turning to face the other way so he wouldn’t have to see the disappointment in Rhodey’s face.

“Loki? As in–”

“Yeah.”

“Isn’t he supposed to be one of the bad guys?”

“Not anymore.” Well that part was still up for debate. As much as he tried not to think about it, Tony didn’t doubt Loki would be up to his old tricks if he could get away with it. But what Rhodey didn’t know couldn’t hurt him, and if Loki was acting the model citizen for the moment, that was all Tony cared about.

“So now he’s your boyfriend.”

Tony paused. His relationship with Loki was a hard one to define. They both undoubtedly felt something for each other and, with the exception of Tony’s momentary lapse of control before Loki came back, they were both faithful, though they barely spent any time together when they weren’t out drinking or in bed.

“I guess he is,” he said. He risked a glance back at Rhodey to see a frown crease his forehead.

“Are you sure this is good for you?”

Tony rolled his eyes. Just once he’d like to tell someone about Loki without his judgement being called into question. “I swear to God, if I have to have this conversation one more time...”

“You can’t blame me for being worried, Tony. You reek of alcohol, you look like you haven’t had a decent night’s sleep in weeks... I’d like to point out, last time I saw you acting like this you were dying.”

“I’m not dying, Rhodey, I’m celebrating.”

“This is you celebrating?”

“Actually right now this is me wishing you’d get that stick removed from your ass. I’d be happy to loan you the money for the surgery. Hell, consider it a gift.” Rhodey just frowned again, his arms folded across his chest as his lips pressed into a thin line. “I appreciate the concern, but really, I’m doing great. S.H.I.E.L.D. has finally stopped interfering in my life, I don’t have to answer to Nick goddamn Fury anymore, and in case that wasn’t enough to have me doing cartwheels around the place, there’s an actual god upstairs who wants to be with me. Is it too much to ask for you to be happy for me?”

Rhodey let out a weary sigh as he headed back to the door. “You know where I am if you need me.” Tony nodded and gave him an unenthusiastic salute. “I’ll let you know when we reschedule your presentation.”

Tony scowled as soon as Rhodey was out of sight. It was starting to feel like the whole world was against him. But if he’d proved one thing in his life it was that he’s more than capable of self-sufficiency. What did he really need his so-called friends for, anyway? He had Loki now.

That didn’t stop Rhodey’s words from getting to him, though. Tony just couldn’t fathom what Rhodey had to be concerned about. He didn’t seem worried about what Loki was doing to Tony so much as what Tony was doing to himself, which wouldn’t be all that shocking given the erratic behaviour Tony had subjected Rhodey to over the course of their friendship, though what did that have to do with his relationship with Loki?

He lay awake for hours that night, their conversation repeating over and over in his head until he couldn’t take it.

“Loki,” he said, “you awake?”

“Mm,” Loki grunted without moving a muscle, still curled on his side with his back to Tony.

“Is this bad for us?”

Loki was wide awake and facing Tony in an instant. “What makes you say that?”

“It’s just giving up everyone, hiding away together – it doesn’t exactly seem healthy.” Loki just stared at him in return and Tony shook his head as if the movement could drive his thoughts away. “Forget it. Go back to sleep.”

It was stupid to bring it up. He and Loki were fine. Okay, so Tony had been hitting the bottle a little hard lately, but that was nothing new, and it had nothing to do with Loki. If anything, it was because he had the freedom to do it without facing a lecture in the morning. Loki was the only person in Tony’s life who didn’t try to control him, and it felt wonderful. Tony was a big boy, he could make his own mistakes. Maybe if his friends lived a little and did the same, they’d see it. But he wouldn’t hold his breath.

Loki didn’t move, and when Tony rolled back to face him again his eyes were still fixed on Tony, the hint of a frown drawing his brows together.

“It’s nothing,” Tony said.

“You don’t believe it, then?”

He sat up and regarded Loki for a minute. “No, not really. I understand why everyone’s freaking out, but they don’t get it. They don’t know you like I do.” He leant down to kiss Loki’s forehead.

“They’ll never trust me,” Loki said as Tony’s lips brushed against his skin.

“It doesn’t matter. We’re better off without them.”

***

Mild dread built in Loki’s stomach as he watched Tony return to sleep. He’d known this was coming, the first seeds of doubt beginning to spring up in Tony’s mind. Of course the Avengers would be horrified by the news Tony and Loki had become intimate – Loki would have been amazed if they had not – though he thought getting away from their influence would prevent their concerns infecting Tony. He hadn’t considered the reactions of Tony’s other friends.

His every instinct told him to cut and run, to save himself the pain of watching Tony slowly turn against him by leaving before it could happen, but he knew that was no real option. He was bound to Tony unless he wished to return to his prison in Asgard, and besides, Loki couldn’t even bear to think about abandoning him. For the first time in years he was actually content. Things were far from perfect, but finally he had someone who was really his, someone who genuinely wanted to be with him instead of feigning admiration or friendship for the sake of being closer to Thor. Loki wasn’t prepared to throw that away.

He silently slipped from the bed and made his way downstairs, considering his possible courses of action. Simply removing the offending parties from the picture was out of the question. Even if the action would not guarantee his return to Asgard, once word reached Tony of his friends’ demise he would soon suspect Loki’s involvement, and Loki would be forever cast out from his affections.

Similarly, he could not be sure affecting only their minds would not violate the terms of his release. So what was left for Loki to do? Remain on his best behaviour and attempt to win them over with his charm? He supposed it would work in time, though it would take far longer to convince Tony’s friends he was not a threat than it would take for them to poison Tony’s mind against him. All he could do was hope Tony keeps his distance.

Loki sighed and stepped outside. He knew that plan would last for weeks at most. It was obvious Tony still longed to be in his teammates’ company, despite his frequent declarations to the contrary, and if the Avengers believed Tony under a spell they would surely not abandon him. Loki clenched his fists and fought back the anger threatening to engulf him. He had done some abhorrent things in his time, he was painfully aware of that, but surely he was not so terrible as to deserve every shred of happiness torn away from him? How could he be expected to keep from trouble when he had nothing to gain in return for his efforts?

He took a deep breath to calm himself. Still the urge to lash out in his frustration was overwhelming, the magic already sparking within him, but it would do no good to lose control. He would need a level head if he was to come up with a more permanent solution to this problem, one that would satisfy all involved parties. He melted out of sight, materialising on a nearby beach.

The change of location was somewhat refreshing. Watching the waves crash against light sands did help clear his thoughts a little, though his mind still whirred as he considered and rejected plan after plan. Loki was a problem solver, he always had been, yet having to consider the supposed morality of each potential solution was making matters increasingly difficult. Perhaps it was time to accept he truly was powerless in this.

Yet there was little he despised more than that feeling, and when something he cared for so strongly was at stake, he would sooner die than sit idly by and let others dictate the outcome. His rage spiked again. It was no use. He could not bottle up his emotions without the risk of exploding later, and that he keenly wished to avoid.

It was a surprisingly cathartic experience watching the rocks tumble into the ocean when he formed cracks in the cliffside, merely pebbles falling at first but growing larger as Loki deepened the fractures with a twist of his hand. This was what he’d longed for in the weeks spent aimlessly wandering Tony’s house, searching for something to occupy his time. This was what he needed. The impulse to continue his destruction lasted long after his initial outburst ended, but Loki held back. It had been enough to quell his building aggravation – anything more could lead him back down a dangerous path.

 

“Loki?” Thor had arrived back at the house not long before Loki reappeared in the living room, judging by the armour still adorning him and Mjolnir in his hand. He frowned when he saw Tony was not clutched at Loki’s side like they so often arrived home. “Where have you been?”

“Out.”

“Alone?”

“Yes,” Loki said as he sank into a chair. Thor was gearing up for a conversation, Loki could tell. He did not have the energy to humour him, yet given the concern radiating from his oversized frame, Loki would not get away easily either.

“What is it?” Loki sighed. He’d learnt long ago there was little point in sharing his fears with his brother, though he had asked to hear them, and after the events of the last few years, Thor still fought to return their relationship to how it once was. Or how he had once thought it to be, at least. “Have you and Tony–”

“We’re fine,” Loki said. He was not prepared to put voice to those worries. Yet there was something else that had been weighing on him increasingly as the weeks passed. “How do you stand it,” he asked, “having so little to do here?”

“I find myself not wanting for battles, to my surprise. Granted, they are much different from those we are used to fighting, but the fulfilment to be found in success is the same.”

“I am not about to join your infernal team.”

Thor laughed. “I would not expect you to. I simply meant there are plenty of ways you could find use here. But if not, you have Tony – do you have need of anything else?”

“He is not mine every hour of the day. We would be sure to kill each other if that was the case. He has his own life independent of mine, and without the same I fear what the restlessness would drive me to.” He could still feel his magic coursing within him, and if this boredom he was faced with when Tony shut himself away would continue much longer, he knew more destructive outbursts would come. Spending his days waiting for Tony to require his company was only marginally more appealing than being locked away in the dungeons.

Thor gazed downwards, fiddling awkwardly with Mjolnir’s handle as he considered Loki’s words. “Your counsel will always be much needed, if not your skill with a blade. Or your magics,” he added as an afterthought, quickly changing the subject when he looked up to catch the frown dawning on Loki’s face. “Sleep now. Things will be clearer in the morning.”

He clapped a hand to Loki’s shoulder and headed to his chambers without another word. Loki watched him disappear before making his own way back to bed, lying beside Tony and breathing in his woody scent as he watched him sleep. Thor had helped to ease Loki’s doubts somewhat, though he was still left with the awful suspicion that his boredom would no longer be a concern when Tony inevitably turned from him.


	6. Chapter 6

Tony yawned his way through his rescheduled presentation. There was no need for him to be there really, but Rhodey insisted, even though he knew enough about the suit to fill in any blanks his bosses had. And even if he didn’t, the Iron Patriot sold itself. Hell, anything Tony made would. He could stick his name on a busted TV remote and the thing would be hailed as the next technological breakthrough.

His behaviour didn’t go unnoticed, by Rhodey or whatever military officials it was joining them, though if they wanted the suit bad enough they’d put up with Tony. And they sure as hell wanted the suit.

Of course Tony wouldn’t want to be there. He’d always preferred the development process to this part, having to act a certain way just to please the stick-in-the-mud investors when it was his technology they should be focusing on, and after their last conversation, Rhodey had a way to go to climb back up Tony’s ‘favourite people’ list. He knew it was pretty childish to still be angry days later, but if everyone insisted on treating him like a child they couldn’t be surprised to find him acting like one in return.

As soon as Tony wasn’t needed he was gone, heading straight past Rhodey without giving him the chance to open his mouth. Tony didn’t want to hear whatever he had to say. He was supposed to be making his way to a meeting at Stark Industries once his presentation was over, though after giving it a second’s thought, he turned to drive home instead. Thor had returned from New York just before Tony left that morning, and it’d be nice to spend some time with people who actually had a shred of respect for Tony’s decision-making. They wouldn’t miss him at Stark Industries, anyway.

He checked his phone again as he walked up to the house. No new messages. Tony still hadn’t heard a word about S.H.I.E.L.D. clearing out of his tower. He supposed he could ask Steve or Bruce when one of them inevitably tried to call him later that day, but he knew it would only lead to another awkward conversation about Loki. Besides, he’d rather hear what was going on from Fury himself, if he could bring himself to be honest with Tony for once.

_Yeah, like that’ll ever happen._

Tony wouldn’t be surprised if they hadn’t even started looking for a new building. It would be easier to get rid of Tony than to find somewhere else that would suit their needs. Well tough shit. Tony had played by their rules and hidden away in Malibu for long enough – he wasn’t just going to roll over and take this crap anymore. Maybe moving back in would be just the push S.H.I.E.L.D. needed to get out of his tower.

A crash sounded from inside the house as Tony reached the front door. _This can’t be good_. He burst into the living room to see Thor pinning Loki to the ground, cursing as Loki’s knee collided with his ribs. With a thrust of his hand, Loki sent Thor flying back across the room.

Tony stared in horror. He’d been gone for three hours – what the hell could have happened to lead to this?

“That’s cheating!” Thor threw himself at Loki, skidding straight through him as the image flickered away and Loki appeared at the other side of the room.

“I’m certain I would not have agreed to this had ‘no magic’ been one of your rules, Thor,” Loki replied with a debonair grin. Neither of them were injured – not that Tony could see, at least – or even angry, but it just didn’t seem plausible for the pair to be sparring rather than really fighting. Tony was even more anxious to find out what had happened in his absence now.

A brief smile flitted across Loki’s face as he glanced up to see Tony, and he was at Tony’s side in an instant, leaving a copy in place across the room. Or maybe it was the clone Tony was with. He reached for Loki’s wrist to check and his fingers wrapped around warm, surprisingly moist skin.

“How was it?”

“They’ll order the suits,” Tony shrugged. That was all that mattered. He smiled as he watched Thor climb back to his feet to pounce at the other Loki. “How long before he realises he’s not fighting the real you?”

“Not long enough.”

“You nearly gave me a heart attack, you know. I thought you were trying to kill each other.”

Loki chuckled. “I apologize. In my defence, it was Thor’s idea.”

“What are you, seven?” Tony smiled and turned back to Thor’s battle against no-one. “It’s good to see you two getting along. Though if you guys could reconnect without getting sweaty and disgusting that’d be great.”

“I take it you won’t want to help me clean up, then,” Loki said, his voice lowering into Tony’s favourite sultry tone. Loki could make Tony do anything if he said it in that voice. From the corner of his eye Tony could see Thor catch sight of them and straighten with a glance at the Loki clone he’d been about to charge at.

“If you two want a moment you need only ask,” he sighed, shaking his head as he walked through the flickering image and left them alone. Once Thor was out of sight, Loki pulled Tony in for a kiss, his hand in Tony’s hair holding him closer as his tongue slipped into Tony’s mouth.

“Wait,” Tony said as Loki wrapped a hand around his arm and led him towards the staircase to dive into the shower. “I need to talk to you.”

“What is it?”

“I think we should go back to New York.”

The smile dropped from Loki’s face at that. “Why?”

“Because I’m sick of waiting around for S.H.I.E.L.D. to tell me when I can have my own building back.” Loki just frowned, tension rolling off him in waves. “What’s with you?”

“Nothing.” He paused, biting at the inside of his cheek as he turned over some thought or another in his mind. “When do you want to leave?”

“As soon as possible. Though we’ll still have time for–” Loki took a step back as Tony moved closer.

“We should prepare to leave,” he said, turning to stalk from the room without even glancing back at Tony.

_What the hell is his problem?_

 

Loki was still being weird as they travelled back to New York, not angry or upset that Tony could tell, more like quietly sulking. Tony could push it, try to get Loki to reveal exactly what was bothering him, but Tony had experienced more of these mood swings than he could count – Loki wouldn’t talk, and the more Tony asked him to, the worse his mood would get. It was best to just let it blow over.

Besides, Tony didn’t want to deal with a pissed off Loki right before he was about to deal with a pissed off Nick Fury.

Everyone was looking at the pair as they entered Avengers tower. Most of the agents in the lobby at least tried to be subtle with their furtive glances, but more than a few just outright stared. Tony didn’t know if it was because they all knew he’d been kicked out or because former public enemy #1 had just wandered back into the building. It didn’t really matter either way. Fury was striding towards them before they’d even crossed the room.

“Hey there, Nick,” Tony said with too wide a smile on his face.

“What are you doing here, Stark?”

“I hate shopping for furniture. So I figured why bother when I can just stay here?” Fury’s eye narrowed. “You know, I’m not seeing a whole lot of moving out going on...”

“It’s not as simple as packing up and leaving. There’s still a detention level full of criminals we have to take into consideration. We need to find a secure location before we can even think about moving them.”

“Well then I guess we’ll just have to learn to put up with each other until you’re gone.”

“You two,” Fury said as Tony and Loki stepped around him into the elevator, “are a threat to security. I will not put this organisation in danger because of your impatience, Tony.”

“You won’t be in any danger. Not from us, at least. This is me, Fury. I’m of sound mind, and I’m telling you Loki’s not a threat. You think my head’s been tampered with, give me every test you got. You won’t find any interference.” He closed the doors before Fury could get another word in and glanced at Loki, glad to see a smile fight its way onto his face. “I’m surprised you didn’t try attacking him again.”

“I suspected doing so may contradict my show of reform. Not that your friends believe it anyway.”

“That’s why we’re back.”

“I thought we were returning because you didn’t want to abide by S.H.I.E.L.D.’s rules any longer,” Loki said.

“That too, but I was also hoping if they could see us together they’d realise this is real, that we’re not hurting each other or plotting evil schemes or whatever it is they think is going on with us.”

“You’re letting your teammates remain in the tower?”

“Of course,” Tony said. Regardless of what else was going on, of whether Tony could even consider them friends at the moment, this was their home too. And just because they lived in the same building, it didn’t mean Tony had to have anything to do with them if they still couldn’t support him.

Loki sighed and they rode the rest of the way to Tony’s penthouse in silence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chances are this is going to be the last update for a while. I'm not really happy with this story so far, so I'd rather try to get the whole thing complete and then go back and make any tweaks or rewrites needed than keep uploading chapters that probably still need a lot of work.  
> Sorry for any disappointment this'll cause, but hopefully your reward will be a better fic at the end of it.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I said I wouldn't start updating again until I had the whole thing finished, but hey, I lied. I did intend to have it done by now, so I'm sorry I don't have more to offer after making you wait so long - I promise you won't have to wait another month for the next chapter.

Loki dragged Tony out that evening. It was strange, Loki being the one to suggest going out rather than Tony, though if he hadn’t no doubt Tony would have done before long. In any case, Tony was the one who’d chosen the bar, and of course he had to pick the one his friends were also drinking at.

Tony caught sight of them as soon as he walked in, huddled around a table together across the room. They seemed to be having a good time, Natasha and Bruce chuckling at something Clint had said while Steve smiled into his glass. None of them had glanced towards the doorway yet.

“Yes, they really seem to have missed you,” Loki said.

“Shut up.”

“Do you want to go somewhere else?”

“No.” _Yes_. “Why should we?”

They found a table as far from the others as they could. Tony didn’t want to hide, but he didn’t want them to catch sight of him and try to talk either. Though they wouldn’t come over if they saw him with Loki. No, they’d scrutinise the pair instead, trying to find any sign Tony’s words weren’t true, that Loki was still evil and Tony was his helpless victim, and as soon as they were all back at the tower they’d try to get Tony alone. He rolled his eyes. Surely it was less hassle just to believe him?

As he glanced upwards, he caught sight of the mirror on the wall above them and its reflection of his friends. They still hadn’t noticed him yet, too busy enjoying their own company to pay attention to the other patrons. Tony had to admit it almost hurt, that they had to have known he was back in the tower, but had chosen to go out for a drink instead of making an effort to see or speak to him. He wouldn’t have wanted to hear what they had to say, though the fact none of them had even wanted to see him felt like a knife in the gut. They were supposed to be his friends – had they really given up on him so quickly because of Loki?

His attention was finally wrenched from the mirror when Loki got to his feet with a sigh and stalked towards the door.

“Loki?” Tony said, swinging his feet out of the booth to follow. Loki had been in a mood since Tony first mentioned coming back to New York, but this was the first time he’d gone beyond simply brooding. As Tony hurried across the room, he glanced at his friends’ table again and met Bruce’s eyes, though he was out onto the street before Bruce could leave his seat.

“Loki, where are you going?” Tony called as he caught up with Loki heading towards an alleyway near the bar.

“Back to the tower.”

“I thought you wanted to go out.”

Loki stopped in his tracks and whirled round to pin Tony with a scowl. “Well excuse me if watching you stare at your former friends all evening is not my idea of entertainment. Why do you still insist on pining for them? Have they not already proven they don’t need you?”

“What the hell is your problem, Loki?”

Loki didn’t answer. _Of course – it would be far too much trouble to just tell me what’s wrong_. Instead he rolled his eyes and turned into the alleyway, storming far enough behind the buildings that his disappearance wouldn’t be noticed by any passersby, as Tony continued after him.

“Loki!”

“Goodnight, Stark,” Loki said, his voice filled with irritation, and he blinked out of sight.

Tony stared blankly at the spot where Loki had been standing, still not entirely sure what had just happened, when he heard a strong, clear voice call his name from the street. He stepped back out from the alleyway and slipped into the crowd of pedestrians before Steve could catch up with him.

 

Two days later, Tony and Loki still weren’t speaking. They probably would have been, even if only to shout or hurl insults at each other, if Loki had actually been anywhere to be seen in that time. Tony had briefly entertained the notion Loki had been waiting until Tony fell asleep to come to bed and rising before he woke, though that idea was quickly proven false when Tony noticed Loki’s scent was entirely absent from the sheets.

Tony had no idea where Loki was, whether he’d taken off somewhere or had just been crashing at Thor’s apartment until things blew over. He wasn’t really interested in heading downstairs to check. How could he apologise to Loki if he didn’t even know what he’d done wrong? And why should he, when Loki was the one who’d been out of order?

“Sir,” Jarvis said, jogging Tony from his thoughts, “the telephone...”

“I told you to divert all calls.” He didn’t really feel like speaking to anyone at the moment. Even though he knew ignoring his friends’ calls – if they had actually bothered to call him, that is – would make them more likely to give up on him, in the mood he’d been in, any conversation he had would probably just turn into an argument.

“Yes, it’s just, this is the fourth time Colonel Rhodes has called, and he sounds increasingly distressed.”

“Okay,” Tony said reluctantly, “put him on.” This was unlikely to be a fun conversation, but he knew Rhodey wouldn’t stop trying to reach him, and the longer Tony avoided him the worse it would be.

“Tony?” Rhodey said, worry painfully apparent in his voice.

“Yeah.”

“I’ve been trying to get hold of you for days. Where the hell have you been?”

“I’m back in New York.”

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

“You don’t sound fine,” he said. “You’re scaring me, Tony. Talk to me.”

Tony sighed. “It’s just... It’s hard.”

“Being with Loki?”

“Yeah. Not ‘cause of him – I mean, he’s moody and distant and I never know what’s going on in his damn head, though that’s nothing new – but everything else that’s happening because of it... I knew people wouldn’t like it, though I never thought I’d have to choose between my friends and Loki.”

“I’m sorry man, that’s gotta be tough.”

“What do you think I should do?”

“I can’t make that choice for you, Tony.”

“But if you could, what would you tell me to do?”

Tony could practically feel Rhodey rubbing his forehead as he prepared to answer Tony’s question. “You know I just want you to be happy,” he started, “though you don’t seem all that happy to me right now. And you sure don’t seem healthy. You’ve hit the self-destruct button before, though I can only be there to help you put the pieces back together again if there’s something left to pick up.

“I’ll let you think things through – but don’t make me hound you day and night just to find out how you are, got it?”

“Got it. And Rhodey,” Tony said before he could hang up, “I’m sorry, you know, for being a jackass.”

Rhodey chuckled. “Can I get that in writing so I can frame it?”

“Shut up. I take it back.”

Tony smiled as he hung up, though it soon faded when he realised just how difficult this decision would be to make. Loki meant the world to him, as frustrated as Tony was with him at that moment, but then could he really give up four of his closest friends – not to mention put up with the endless hell he’d get from Fury – just for the sake of his love life?

“Jarvis, have there been any other calls?”

“Excluding Colonel Rhodes’, you have had eight calls since your arrival: three from Captain Rogers, three from Dr. Banner and two from Agent Romanoff.”

“Any messages?”

“One, from Dr. Banner this morning. Shall I play it?”

Tony bit the inside of his cheek before answering. “Might as well.”

“ _Tony_ ,” Bruce’s voice sounded, “ _how are you?_ _We’ve been trying to reach you since you came back. I even tried heading up to your floor a few times, but I could never get into your place_.” Tony frowned at that. Jarvis had never asked him if he’d grant Bruce permission to enter, and restricting access without Tony’s say-so was far beyond Jarvis’ protocols. He shook his head when it hit him. Keeping his friends out so Tony would become even more convinced they’d abandoned him? There was only one person Tony could think of who would pull that kind of crap.

“ _I guess you’re still not in the mood to speak to any of us_ ,” the message continued, “ _and I won’t take up much of your time if you’d rather not hear from me, but... just talk to us, please. Let us know you’re okay – we’re all worried about you. It’s too quiet here without you around._

_“Well I should let you go. I’ll speak to you soon, I hope._ ”

“Would you like me to return Dr. Banner’s call, sir?”

“No,” Tony said as he pushed himself to his feet, “I think Loki and I need to have a conversation first.”

He strode into the elevator and made his way down to Thor’s apartment. He didn’t know what he’d do if Loki wasn’t there, though luckily he didn’t have to worry about that. After a few minutes of incessantly pounding the front door, Loki yanked it open to glare at him.

“What do you want?” he snapped.

“Nice to see you too, dear,” Tony said as he stepped into the apartment. He looked around the empty room and frowned. “Where’s Thor?”

“He was called away. Avengers business, I presume.”

“Of course.” _And of course, I wouldn’t know a damn thing about it..._ “So I had an interesting message from Bruce today,” he started.

Loki feigned indifference at Tony’s words, but Tony could see something spark in his eyes despite his effort to keep his expression neutral. “And?”

“And it turns out no-one’s been able to visit the penthouse since we got back. Wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?” Loki stayed silent, his face still giving nothing away as he stared at Tony. “Why are you so desperate to keep the others out?”

“Why are you so desperate to go running back to them?” Loki shot back, as the spark in his eyes grew into full-blown anger.

“They’re my _friends_.” Tony’s fists clenched as he spoke, his heart rate soaring as his own rage consumed him. How could Loki have the cheek to turn this around on Tony? He wasn’t even surprised at this point. Tony had always known what Loki was like; it was stupid to think he’d change.

“They don’t want you.” Loki spat each word out with more venom than Tony had ever heard from him, but Tony knew better than to listen. He’d told himself the same countless times, yet coming from Loki it just sounded like a pathetic lie.

_Well that’s his thing, isn’t it? Every word that spills from his damn lips is poison._

“How could they?” Loki continued. “What are you without your precious suits? Just a big brain drenched in alcohol and self-pity.”

“It’s called loyalty, Loki! Maybe you’re not familiar with the concept.” Tony’s voice shook as he spoke, whether from anger or pain at Loki’s words, he didn’t know. His emotions were such a mess he couldn’t even begin to figure out what he was feeling at that moment.

A mocking laugh erupted from Loki in return. “Yes, you’re such a paragon of loyalty yourself, aren’t you? How long was I absent from your bed before you had to fill it with someone else?”

Tony knew Loki was going to throw that back in his face. It was a surprise it had taken this long. “Oh like you wouldn’t have done the same, if I wasn’t the only person who could actually stand to be around you! Hell, your own family didn’t even want you.”

A quiet, seething rage settled over Loki, but he didn’t fling back another insult in response, didn’t even throw a punch. He just stood, arms at his sides, staring at Tony as if he didn’t know whether he wanted to kill him or break down in tears. Tony had hit a nerve, though he couldn’t find it in him to care just yet. He wanted to hurt Loki. Loki had said enough to Tony to deserve it.

The silence between them stretched on and on, their harsh breathing sounding too loud in the absence of their raised voices, until the phone in Tony’s pocket began buzzing. The noise was insufferable in the quiet room.

“Answer it,” Loki said with a scowl as he stormed into the bedroom. Tony was hardly in the mood to do anything but scream, though if he had to listen to that buzzing for another second he’d smash his phone into the ground.

“What is it, Bruce?” he said, trying his hardest to keep his tone polite.

“Tony–” There was so much worry in Bruce’s voice Tony could almost taste it. “–it’s Steve.”

***

Loki stood on the balcony of the penthouse, looking down at the traffic below and trying to bring his temper back under control. The din of the city did nothing to help calm his tumultuous emotions, yet even in the quiet of Thor’s chambers Loki found no peace, and at least the noise here served to distract him somewhat.

It took every fibre of his self-control to keep from lashing out. He had half a mind to give in and lay waste to the tower, the city, as much of this wretched planet as he could. What could the All-Father do but drag him back to his prison? He’d rather be back on Asgard than in Tony’s company, and he imagined Thor was the only one who did not share that sentiment.

The door behind him pushed open almost soundlessly and Loki tensed, not daring to tear his eyes from the spot he had been gazing at. The last thing he wanted was another argument, but it was too late to disappear. He breathed a sigh of relief when he recognised Thor’s heavy footfalls.

“Not at Captain Rogers’ side?”

Thor came to stand beside him and raised a hand to rest on Loki’s shoulder before thinking better of it. “I heard about your quarrel,” he said. Perfect. That meant the others no doubt knew about it too. As if they didn’t already have enough ammunition to drive Tony away from Loki. “How are you?”

Loki had no answer to give. He continued to stare out at the city in silence, his eyes unblinking, until the words finally escaped him. “This isn’t working,” he said, not so much speaking to Thor as putting voice to his fears.

He had been a fool to think it would. Had they not had that exact conversation before Loki left for Asgard, that they were better off ending their love affair before either of them could hurt the other?

“Tony cares for you. Deeply. And I don’t think he would let you go without a fight. The question is, are you willing to fight for him in return?”

“It feels like that’s all I’ve been doing since my release,” Loki sighed.

Thor patted his back, a reassuring smile on his face when Loki turned to look at him. “Come,” he said, “let us head down to the training room. You can work out your frustrations.”

“Using you as a punching bag would make me feel better, I suppose.”

A hearty chuckle bubbled up from Thor’s chest in response. “That’s the spirit.”

They turned to make their way back inside when an uncomfortable sensation crept up on Loki. He could have sworn he had felt something, lurking on the very edges of his senses, too intangible to determine for sure. There was only one thing he would associate with such a feeling, though the magic was unlike anything he could recognise.

“Thor, wait,” he said, and Thor spun back around with a questioning glance at Loki. “Do you feel that?”

Thor looked around their immediate area as if he could see the feeling Loki was referring to, while Loki gazed skyward, searching for the source of the disturbance. He found it on the roof of the tower, the tiniest hint of movement that would have been unnoticeable to someone who hadn’t learnt to hone their senses the way Loki had over the years.

He wrapped a hand around Thor’s thick wrist and the pair melted into nothing, reappearing on the roof just as a blast of energy shot towards them. Loki blinked out of sight again while Thor threw himself to the side to dodge the attack, and they charged simultaneously towards their would-be attackers.

The creatures were from no realm Loki had visited – he would surely remember their green skin and pointed ears had he encountered their kind before – though he was not overly concerned about defeating them. They were fierce opponents, certainly, whatever magic they possessed rendering them able to form blades and clubs in place of their hands, yet even without Mjolnir at his side, Thor and Loki were able to dispatch the two creatures with relative ease.

“Is that all of them?” Thor said as he glanced over the rooftop. Their attackers had concealed themselves well, but Loki could sense no more of the magic he had noticed and he nodded to Thor in response.

“Why would we face just two?”

“Scouts, most likely.” Thor frowned as he kicked one of the creatures onto its back to study its face. There was no sign of recognition in his features – though if Loki had never seen them before it was highly unlikely Thor ever had either.

Loki sighed and looked down at the lifeless bodies. “We should have kept one alive.”

“Yes,” Thor said as he straightened. “But there is nothing we can do about it now.”

Loki’s worries did not ease as he and Thor materialised back downstairs, and from the tension radiating from Thor, their concerns were shared.

Something was coming, there was no doubt about it.


	8. Chapter 8

The cab ride to the hospital passed by in a blur. Tony could barely think straight, let alone pay attention to anything happening around him. This wasn’t – this _couldn’t_ – be happening. Steve Rogers did not get injured. He’d get knocked down, scraped and bruised like the rest of them, but Captain goddamn America did not end up in the ICU. It just wasn’t possible.

He threw a wad of bills at the cab driver as he spilled out of the car, probably giving the guy a $200 dollar tip but as far as Tony was concerned he deserved it for weaving through the traffic so much faster than Tony had expected.

Bruce was waiting for Tony by the Emergency Room doors, his clothes still stretched and tattered from when he must have hulked out. He smiled weakly as Tony jogged towards him, though the stress was obvious on his face. Tony probably didn’t look much better himself.

“How is he?” Tony said, neither of them bothering with pleasantries as they made their way through the corridors.

“He’s still unconscious. He’ll survive, but–” Bruce paused, his lips pressing into a thin line until he made himself finish his sentence. It pained Tony to hear just as much as it pained Bruce to say. “–he’s in bad shape.”

They came to a stop outside a private room. The blinds covering the window were closed, but Tony still tried to get a glimpse inside before Bruce lead him into a nearby waiting room where Thor and Clint were already seated.

“The prodigal son returns,” Clint said with a smile, thick bandages wrapped around his forearm and a nasty looking graze on his cheek. “I’d say it’s good to see you, but...” He nodded towards the corridor and Steve’s room.

“Yeah,” Tony said as he sat down.

“Fury’s not going to like it when he finds out you’re here.”

“Who cares about Fury?” Bruce cut in. There was a sharpness to his voice Tony couldn’t have heard more than once or twice in the few years they’d been friends. “Steve is Tony’s friend too – he has just as much right to be here as we do.”

“I agree,” Clint said.

“So what the hell happened?”

“I wish I knew, Stark.” Clint shook his head, sitting up straighter to properly recount the afternoon’s events. He winced as he moved his bandaged arm, though it didn’t distract him from his account. “We got the call – what, two hours ago? – trouble downtown, pretty standard by all accounts. S.H.I.E.L.D.’s guys have been taking out some of the lower risk cases, but it was looking like we’d need the whole team for this one. Or as whole as the team is at the moment. We were on top of things, and then next thing I know something comes flying in out of nowhere. Explodes right on top of Steve. I didn’t even see what it was that hit us.”

“What happened to you?”

“Shrapnel,” he said, looking down at his arm. “Thirty stitches. I got off easy. Nat was further back, and Thor and the green meanie are pretty much impervious, so it was just Steve who really got it.”

“Damn.”

“Yeah.”

The four men were silent for a moment, listening for any signs of activity near Steve’s room, until Clint spoke again. “You guys want some coffee?”

They all nodded and as Clint got to his feet, Bruce said, “I’ll give you a hand.”

As soon as the door closed behind them Tony’s strength evaporated, the day’s emotional rollercoaster finally taking its toll, and he buried his head in his hands. He didn’t even register the movement beside him as Thor came to sit next to him and gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze.

“How are you, Tony?”

“Great. This is just the perfect end to my day.” He sighed and shook his head. “And here I am whining about my problems when Steve’s the one I should be worrying about.”

_Tony Stark: taking self-absorption to dizzying new heights since 1969._

“What happened?”

Loki and I had a fight.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. Was it serious?”

“I told him no-one had ever wanted him.” It was only then Tony realised just how dangerous those words had been. If Loki went off the deep end after hearing that... “He’s not going to forgive me, is he?”

“He will make you work for it,” Thor said as he got to his feet. “I should find him.”

“Keep him out of trouble, okay?”

“I shall. And if there is any change here–”

“We’ll keep you posted.”

“Thank you, Tony.” Thor reached out to shake Tony’s hand before heading into the corridor, leaving Tony alone once again. The quiet was unbearable, nothing to distract him from his racing thoughts, until quick footsteps echoed down the corridor and Natasha strode into the waiting room sliding a phone back into her pocket.

“Tony,” she nodded, as Clint and Bruce appeared behind her.

“Natasha.”

“We’ve missed you.”

“Yeah, I missed you guys, too.”

“Fury’s on his way,” she said to Clint as he handed her one of the cups of coffee. “It shouldn’t be long before he gets here.”

“I guess that’s my cue to take off.”

“No, Tony...” Bruce started.

“It’s okay. I don’t want to make a scene.”

“You’ll come back down tomorrow?”

“Absolutely.” He shifted forward to get to his feet, before Bruce held up a hand.

“Listen, Tony,” he said, “just because you’re not officially part of the team anymore, it doesn’t mean you’re not one of us. We still love you.”

“Alarming taste in men aside,” Clint cut in.

“Hey, no-one’s more alarmed than me.”

“You know it’s okay, you and Loki? We may not like it, but if you’re safe and if he makes you happy, that’s all we want.”

Tony beamed at Bruce in response. It felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders hearing those words. He didn’t even care he was still off the team – he wasn’t about to lose his friends, that was all that mattered. Of course, their approval didn’t mean a damn thing if he’d blown it with Loki already, though.

“Thank you, guys,” he said. “It means a lot. Do we need to hug this out?”

“I think we’re okay,” Natasha replied with a smirk.

“Then I should head home. Let me know if Steve wakes up?”

Clint nodded. “Just so you know,” he said as Tony stood, “if Loki hurts you, we’ll kill him.”

“Sounds reasonable.”

“You really care about him?” He arched an eyebrow as he spoke, his lip curling in distaste at the thought.

“Yeah,” Tony said. “He’s not so bad, once you get to know him.”

“I’ll take your word for it.”

Tony laughed at that and turned towards the door, only to find Natasha stood in front of it. He could have sworn she’d been sat beside Bruce just a second before.

“’Just sex,’ huh?” she said quietly as Tony reached the door, shooting him a knowing look before moving aside.

Tony shrugged. “That was then.”

With a smile at Clint and Bruce Tony stepped back into the corridor, but he wasn’t ready to go home just yet. He couldn’t bear the thought of getting back to the penthouse and finding Loki gone, or worse: finding him still there and looking for a fight.

He gave Steve’s room another glance, the closed blinds again offering no chance to catch a glimpse of his injured friend, and slowly made his way to the street, settling on a bench near the exit to finish his coffee. A black van pulled up after a moment and Fury rushed into the hospital, Agent Hill at his heels. It was a good thing Tony got out when he did. This was the last day he’d want to deal with a stressed out Nick Fury.

Tony had no idea how long he sat there, watching people come and go while he worked up the courage to dig his phone out of his pocket to call Loki. This was ridiculous. He wanted to do it – he _needed_ to do it – but the fear of putting his foot in his mouth and causing another argument left him frozen in place.

With one last sip of now-cold coffee, he forced himself to make the call. No answer, of course. After all that, Loki didn’t even pick up his damn phone. Tony would have laughed at himself if he wasn’t so anxious to talk to Loki.

“Loki,” Tony said once he got through to Loki’s voicemail, “I don’t even know if you’ll hear this, but I gotta say it. I need us to fix this. I just – I need you. And I’m an idiot for not realising sooner just how much you mean to me. But we can do better, prove to Nick Fury and anyone else that this is the real deal. Just come home, okay?”

 

The penthouse was empty when Tony returned, and he sank down into the couch with a sigh. He supposed he could go to Thor’s to try and talk to Loki, though if he still wasn’t ready to speak to him, Tony wasn’t going to push it.

He sat in silence for a while, absently watching the sky darken outside until he felt a familiar shift in the air and Loki’s voice sounded behind him. “Tony.”

“You came,” Tony said, turning to face Loki with a small smile. Loki nodded, hands at his sides and his mouth set in a thin line, watching Tony almost warily. “Come here.”

He pulled Loki down onto the couch beside him and nudged Loki’s shoulder with his own, brushing his fingers against the back of Loki’s hand as they looked out across the city and Loki began to relax.

“This isn’t how I thought it would be,” he said quietly.

“Yeah, me neither. But we’ll be okay. We just need to work out the kinks.”

“We’re fighting.”

“That’s actually normal, far as I can tell,” Tony said. “You fight, you make up, you fix what needs fixing and you move on.”

“You fought with your woman?”

“Pepper? We fought all the time. But that’s not what ended things,” he added, sensing where Loki’s mind was heading.

“What happened?”

“She almost died. People tried to hurt her to get to me, and I knew I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if something happened to her, so I let her go.” He shrugged and glanced back at Loki watching him intently. “I figured it was easier to not have anyone. Less people you care about, less people can get hurt ‘cause of you. And then you came along.”

The corner of Loki’s mouth quirked upwards in response. “Sorry.”

“It’s worth it,” Tony smiled. “So are you gonna tell me what the hell’s been going on with you?”

Loki sighed, though he didn’t answer Tony’s question directly. “What wouldn’t you give up to be back in your precious teammates’ good graces?”

“I wouldn’t give up you, if that’s what you’re thinking. Besides, I don’t have to. They haven’t exactly given us their blessing, but they’re okay with this.”

Loki’s eyebrows shot up at that. “They are?”

“They are. Don’t tell me you don’t want me now,” he said with mock severity, before his expression melted into a grin.

“It does take some of the fun out of it.”

Tony chuckled, shifting closer against Loki’s body as Loki draped an arm across his back. It seemed like such a long time since they had been able to enjoy each other like this without the rest of the world getting in the way. He was still worried about Steve, and there was still S.H.I.E.L.D. to think about, but as long as his relationship with the others was in no danger and he and Loki were back on track, Tony could deal with anything else that came at him.

He smiled and pressed a soft kiss to Loki’s lips. “You have gotta be the dumbest smart person I’ve ever known.”

“Are you still apologising or insulting me again?” Loki said with a frown.

“I’m not going anywhere, Loki. You don’t have to keep fighting for me. I love you.”

Loki pulled back to look at Tony, his eyes wide. “You do?”

“Yeah. God help me, I really do.”

Loki’s lips twitched before his nonchalant mask slipped back into place and he shrugged. “Good.”

He settled back into the couch, his body relaxing as Tony nestled against him again. They didn’t say a word, their mouths finding each other occasionally until Tony slid to his feet and gently tugged Loki to follow.

“Let’s go to bed.”

Tony lay down on the mattress and pulled Loki on top of him, the pair showering each other with tender kisses as they shed their clothes. He threaded his fingers through Loki’s hair and pulled him back to drink him in, his eyes dark with lust and lips swollen. The sight made Tony hungrier for him than he’d ever felt, and his hands trailed down Loki’s chest as he sucked on the sensitive spot below Loki’s ear.

“How do you want it?” Loki said around a low moan.

“I don’t care; do whatever you want to me.”

He moved slowly above Tony, their eyes only leaving each other when Loki leant in to press soft kisses to Tony’s lips and neck. Tony’s heart raced, almost as much as it did during their more energetic romps, and as his hands gripped Loki’s ass to help steer his movements, a thought occurred.

“Loki,” he breathed, “are we making love?”

“I suppose we are. Do you want me to–”

“No.” Tony shook his head frantically to drive his point home further. “I like it.”

They stayed entwined once it was over, their arms wrapped around each other as they came down from the high, ignoring the sticky, sweaty mess they both were. Tony expected Loki to pull away any minute when the intimacy freaked him out, but the moment never came. They just lay together, the only sound their ragged breathing until Loki’s voice curled around Tony’s ear.

“You know you mean the world to me,” he started.

“I know. You don’t have to say it.”

They closed their eyes as tranquillity washed over them, their fingers absently trailing along each other’s skin until Loki spoke again. “What happened with Captain Rogers? Is he–”

“He’s alive,” Tony said. “He’ll be okay soon enough. I just need us to be okay too.”

“I suppose I can find it in my heart to forgive you.”

“You sure you don’t want me to work for it a little more?” Tony rolled them over and slid down in the bed, brushing kisses down Loki’s stomach before pausing just below his navel and glancing back up at Loki in a silent request to proceed.

Loki grinned. “Perhaps a little more, then.”


	9. Chapter 9

Tony opened his eyes to see late morning light pouring in through the windows. Shit, how long had they been asleep? Loki’s arm was draped over Tony’s hip and Tony rolled over to see him still out cold, his mouth hanging open slightly and his hair all over the place. He looked completely adorable.

A smile crept across Tony’s face as he watched Loki. He’d only ever seen Loki like this a handful of times over the course of their relationship, and he’d yet to grow tired of these rare glimpses of vulnerability. Loki would probably punch him when he woke up to find Tony’s goofy face leering down at him, but for now Tony was going to enjoy this moment. His fingers brushed along the pale skin poking out from the bedsheets, stopping when they reached the scar on Loki’s shoulder.

The other marks Thanos had left Loki with were long gone, but the handprint on his shoulder was as fresh as it had been the day it was first seared into his flesh. Tony pressed his lips to it, surprised for a moment at how it still felt warmer than the rest of Loki’s skin, and when he pulled his head back a sleepy eye was fixed on him.

“Morning, princess,” Tony said.

Loki’s brows twitched closer together. “Why do you insist on calling me such strange names?” There was no irritation in his tone, only a languid kind of curiosity that raised a chuckle from Tony.

“It’s endearing. Learn to love it.”

“I don’t know why I put up with you sometimes.” He rolled onto his back as he spoke and Tony lamented the absence of Loki’s hand on his hip, though he was soon distracted when Loki slowly stretched his arms above his head. The movement exposed his flat stomach and Tony’s lips were on it in a second.

“What should I call you then?” Tony said, resting his chin on Loki’s stomach as Loki folded his arms under his head to gaze back at him. “Baby, honeytoes–”

“–Master?” Loki offered, a wink of a smile in his eyes.

“In your dreams, honeytoes.” Tony pressed another kiss to Loki’s chest before resting his head back against his pillow, his fingers tracing patterns across Loki’s abdomen. He hadn’t felt this content for a long time. “We should fight more often.”

“Let’s not,” Loki said as his smile faded and he pushed Tony’s hand away to sit up.

_Way to ruin the moment, Tony. Note to self: keep your big mouth shut in future._ “What is it?”

“Nothing.” He shook his head as he spoke. Tony didn’t believe him for a second.

“Loki, talk to me.”

Loki sighed and glanced back at Tony, turning his head away again before he spoke. “It hurt, what you said.”

“I know; I’m sorry.” Tony pushed himself up to sit beside Loki, wrapping his arms around Loki’s waist as he laid his cheek against Loki’s shoulder. “You know I didn’t mean it, right?”

“That doesn’t make it any less true.”

“ _I_ want you. Isn’t that enough?”

“You do have an inflated opinion of yourself, don’t you?” Loki looked down at him as he spoke, his smile thankfully back in place.

Tony grinned, glad to see Loki’s mood begin to lighten. “Look who’s talking.”

A low chuckle rose from Loki’s chest and he settled back among the pillows as Tony followed. And if Tony’s lips collided with Loki’s when he sank down, it was purely accidental. As was the trail of kisses he left down Loki’s neck and collarbone.

“Be honest with me, Loki – are we all right?”

Loki matched Tony’s serious tone in a heartbeat. “Yes,” he said. “Or we will be, at least.”

“And the others? Are you–”

“Are you asking if I’m plotting against your friends?”

A wry smile spread across Tony’s face. “You are kinda known for it.”

“I have no immediate plans.”

“Let’s keep it that way,” he said as he curled against Loki again.

“If you insist.”

They stayed wrapped around each other after that, resting in comfortable silence until Tony let out a sigh. “I should really get up.”

He made no attempt to move though, and Loki gave him no encouragement, instead stroking his fingers along Tony’s spine in an apparent endeavour to drive him insane. After another two minutes of inaction, Tony groaned and managed to push himself back into a sitting position, though the movement made Loki’s hands fall to rest by Tony’s ass, which did nothing to help his motivation problems.

“I mean it,” Tony said, more to convince himself than Loki. “I need to go see Steve.”

Loki’s hands returned to Tony’s spine in response, dragging another groan from Tony as his eyes fluttered closed.

“I could heal him.”

Tony’s eyebrows climbed up his forehead. “You would do that?”

“If you asked me to,” Loki shrugged.

“Why?”

“It’s important to you.” Simple as that, then. Tony felt like kissing him, though he knew if he did they’d end up collapsing into bed again and he really did want to get up. Well, what he really wanted was to stay cuddled up with Loki all day, but he couldn’t.

“Do it,” he said instead. Loki started to disappear there and then, but luckily Tony realised what he was doing and managed to stop him before he could leave. “Jesus, put some clothes on first.”

“I would be there and back in a second,” Loki grumbled, though he climbed out of bed with only a sigh and slipped into the pair of jeans still lying discarded on the floor from the night before. He threw his hands out to the sides and raised his eyebrows in a silent ‘happy now?’ and, still shirtless and barefoot, blinked out of sight.

Tony chuckled to himself at Loki’s petulant display and seized the opportunity to escape the bed before Loki could return and tempt him back under the covers. He hurried to use the toilet, and when he returned to his bedroom a minute later, Loki was sat with his back against the headboard, his legs crossed at the ankle as he waited for Tony to reappear.

“You did it?” Loki nodded, a smile twitching on his lips as Tony beamed at him. “Thank you.”

_Screw it_ , Tony thought. He sank back onto the bed and kissed Loki with enough force to let him know just how much he had appreciated the gesture, his hands tangling in Loki’s hair as Loki let out a tiny moan.

“Sir–” Jarvis interrupted before things could heat up between Tony and Loki. He was turning into a hell of a good cockblock. Tony would have to fix that. For the moment, though, he only grunted at Jarvis.

“Sir,” he continued, “Dr. Banner is on the line.”

Tony pulled away from Loki’s lips with a wet smack. “Put him on.”

“Hey, Tony.” The confusion was obvious in Bruce’s tone. Tony wasn’t going to say anything just yet, though.

“Hey, what’s up?”

“I’ve just had a call from the hospital. Steve’s apparently had a, uh, ‘miraculous recovery.’”

“Imagine that,” Tony said as he and Loki exchanged matching smirks.

“They want to keep him in for a day or two, to figure out what’s going on, but they’ve moved him from Intensive Care. We’re all going down to see him in an hour.”

“I’ll see you there.”

“Great. Bye, Tony.”

Tony grinned at Loki once Bruce hung up, leaning forward to press another kiss to his lips before pulling him off the bed.

“I need a shower,” he said as he dragged Loki into the bathroom, working Loki’s jeans open as they walked.

“You’re meant to be there in an hour – is there really enough time?”

“If we’re quick.”

They weren’t very quick. Tony rushed to Steve’s room fifteen minutes after the gang was supposed to meet there, though surely the others were used to his awful timekeeping by now. He offered them an apologetic smile as he slipped into the room and was only greeted by an exasperated expression from Natasha. She didn’t look too mad, though, which was a relief. It wasn’t that he was afraid of her – he just really, really wanted to stay on her good side.

“Hi, Tony,” Steve said brightly. “It’s great to see you again.”

“Yeah, you too. How’re you feeling?”

“I feel fine.” He sounded just as surprised as the others looked.

“Do you remember anything?” Natasha said.

“It was strange. I was awake, though not really alert enough to know what was going on. The nurse came in to see how I was doing, and then – I can’t describe it. I couldn’t see anyone; there was just this presence... It was probably the medication, but I’m sure there was someone else in the room. They laid a hand on me and I was healed.” His eyes swept across each of them stood around his bed. “Do you think this was, I don’t know, an act of God or something?”

Tony glanced at the others. From the light frowns creasing each of their faces, none of them believed that. Time for Tony to speak up, then.

“An act of a god, maybe,” he ventured cautiously. Five pairs of eyes snapped to him, the frowns only deepening. “Loki offered to heal you.”

“He can do that?” Steve’s question echoed the thoughts of the rest of the team. Except for Thor, of course, who was busy looking so proud of his brother he could burst.

“Yeah,” Tony replied. “He can do that.”

“Why would he?”

“’Cause you’re my friend.”

“Listen, about Loki,” Steve started, but Tony raised a hand to stop him.

“Already been covered. We’re good. Right now I’m more worried about what happened to you guys. I knew you wouldn’t be able to cope without me, though this is a little extreme, don’t you think?”

 

Steve was discharged later that day, and after a lengthy debriefing with Fury, he joined the others in Tony’s penthouse. They took over the large couch while Loki stood, arms folded across his chest, against the wall with Thor acting as a demilitarised zone between him and the Avengers. To Tony’s relief, everyone remained on their best behaviour, though a hint of friction still lingered in the air. Loki in particular radiated tension, whether due to his reluctance to be around the group or because he was still licking his wounds after his and Tony’s fight Tony didn’t know, but either way he crossed to Loki’s side and wrapped his arms around him.

“You okay?” Tony said, pressing a kiss to Loki’s shoulder as Loki’s hand slid down to cup Tony’s own against his stomach. Loki nodded in response and smiled down at Tony in a way that would have been a hell of a shock to the others, who, judging by the lull in conversation, had been watching their display with interest.

Steve cleared his throat awkwardly before Tony’s lips could reach up to Loki’s. “Shall we get started?”

“Good plan,” Tony said, pulling away from Loki to flop down in the nearest chair.

“Do we have any idea what attacked us yet?”

“I took a look at some of the wreckage S.H.I.E.L.D. recovered from the explosion site earlier,” Clint said, opening a manila folder and spreading an array of photographs across the coffee table. “It doesn’t look like anything I’ve seen since–” he paused and glanced at Loki “–since the year before last.”

“So we’re talking aliens. Again.” At least Bruce was neutral as usual. Clint and Natasha both were watching Loki suspiciously, as if he had orchestrated the attack himself. It _was_ possible, Tony supposed, but biased though he was, he just couldn’t believe that.

Thor’s eyes widened as he studied one of the pictures, a close-up of what looked to be part of the bomb casing, charred metal with simple carvings still visible. “I have seen these markings before.”

He handed the picture to Loki, who frowned after a moment and shook his head. “It’s not possible. I thought the Skrulls were wiped out.”

“As did I. But perhaps we were wrong.”

“Guys,” Tony interrupted. “Skrulls?”

“They were – are – an alien race, eradicated by civil war according to Asgard’s records.” A thought occurred to Thor then and his head snapped back round to look at Loki. “The creatures we fought.”

Loki nodded slowly. “It would be foolish to consider the two attacks unconnected.”

“You were attacked?”

“Yesterday,” Thor said. “They were easily dealt with. And certainly not creatures of a race I have encountered before.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Tony said to Loki.

“There were more pressing matters to be discussed.”

Natasha leant forward in her spot on the couch, drawing everyone’s attention back to her. “What do we know about these things? What can they do?”

“The history of ancient peoples always failed to hold my interest for long,” Thor said somewhat apologetically, before glancing at Loki to fill in the blanks.

“They’re shapeshifters, if memory serves. Highly advanced, and they put their skills to use when conquering other realms.”

“Shapeshifters,” Steve repeated. “Does that mean they could be spying on us?”

“That would explain how they knew where to find us,” Bruce said.

“In that case it isn’t safe to talk here.” Natasha stood as she spoke and slid her jacket back on. “And I don’t know about you guys, but I’m starving.”

There was a murmur of agreement and the group slowly gathered their things and headed towards the elevator. Two figures hung back from the others, though.

“Loki,” Steve said before Loki could make his way back to the bedroom, “you got a minute?”

Loki glanced across the room to where Tony stood talking to Bruce as Clint, Natasha and Thor piled into the elevator. “Is this where you warn me not to hurt your dear friend, or else I’ll have you to answer to?”

“I’d be more worried about what Tony would do to you if you hurt him, actually,” he said. “I wanted to thank you for what you did. I know you didn’t do it for me, but still, I appreciate it.”

Loki gave him a curt nod in response and Steve caught up with the others. The doors closed behind him, and the room was plunged into relative silence as Tony turned back to face Loki.

“What was that about?” Tony said as he made his way back to Loki’s side.

“He thanked me for healing him.”

Tony couldn’t fight the smile that spread across his face at Loki’s words. He didn’t expect Loki and his friends to all get along, but it was a good sign that they could at least be civil. Maybe things would turn out well after all.

“So,” he said, taking Loki’s wrist and leading him to the bedroom, “if there are Skrulls spying on us, should we be worried about getting murdered in our sleep?”

“If they were going to, I imagine they would have done so by now. Besides, we don’t know for sure they are watching us.”

“But can we really take that chance?” He met Loki’s eyes with a conspiratorial expression on his face. “We may need to stay up _all night_.”


	10. Chapter 10

“They’re burning.”

“Shut up, Loki, I know what I’m doing!”

“In my experience eggs are not supposed to release such a smell when cooked. Are you certain you have the talent for cooking, Tony?”

“Hey, we’re on my planet here – what do you two know?”

“I think given the amount of food Thor has eaten in his lifetime he would be something of an authority on the subject.”

Tony peered down at his overcooked eggs and frowned. “They’re not that bad, are they?”

He sighed at the looks Thor and Loki shot him in response and emptied the contents of his frying pan into the bin. Thor took the pan from him with a smile, returning it to the countertop before taking over preparing the rest of the eggs. Okay, so Tony’s experiments with cooking had been fairly disastrous in the past, but he hadn’t thought trying to make breakfast would be so much trouble. Really, how hard could it be to make some damn scrambled eggs? Very, apparently.

Loki smirked at Tony as they moved to sit at the kitchen table.

“Shut up,” Tony said again, before Loki could make whatever comment he was clearly desperate to say about Tony’s shameful attempt at cooking. “You know, when you invite a guest round for breakfast, it’s not exactly customary to make them cook the meal themself.”

“I’m sure he would do a much better job of it than you or I.”

That part was likely true. Thor did seem to know what he was doing, at least more than Tony had, and the scent of burnt food was slowly being replaced by a far more pleasant one. Tony put himself to use buttering the stack of toast waiting on the tabletop, more to occupy his hands than anything.

“So did you guys have fun at dinner last night?” he said to Thor.

“Yes, it was a pleasant evening. It is a shame you two did not join us.”

“I somehow doubt my presence would have been very welcome.” Tony gave Loki a sympathetic smile, though he knew Loki hardly lamented that fact.

“I would have welcomed your company,” Thor said pointedly as he served up his perfectly cooked eggs. Tony would have been envious were he not too distracted by the party his taste buds were having.

“Oh my god,” he said, the words barely intelligible with his mouth full of food. “Hey, if this ‘Thunder God’ thing doesn’t work out, there’s a promising career waiting for you as my personal chef.”

Thor chuckled and took his place on the other side of Loki. “I will bear that in mind.”

They fell silent after that, more focused on eating than conversation, and after a few moments Jarvis’ voice echoed through the kitchen.

“Sir, Dr. Banner is requesting entrance.”

“Let him in.” He smiled when Bruce strolled into the kitchen, and poured another cup of coffee. “Morning,” he said as he handed the mug to Bruce.

“Hi.” He nodded to Thor and Loki and, at Tony’s gesture, took a seat, handing Tony a folded piece of paper once he’d sat back down “Natasha asked me to give you this.”

“What, am I not good enough to deserve a phone call?”

Bruce chuckled at Tony’s hurt expression, and Thor glanced between the pair with a confused frown. Either sarcasm wasn’t common on Asgard, or Thor was just too trusting to believe Tony would lie about his emotions. Given Loki’s fondness for sardonic remarks, Tony was inclined to go with the latter. “We’re all trying to be as cautious as we can.”

Bruce raised a good point. While Tony had by no means forgotten about the possibility they were all being watched, that knowledge had slipped from the forefront of his mind as the day started as normal. Luckily he hadn’t accidently revealed any sensitive information so far that morning, but it was only a matter of time. They needed to find a better solution before long.

Tony backed away with the note, pressing himself against the wall behind him and opening the paper just wide enough to make out the address of the safe house Natasha had found the team. He didn’t know how she’d managed to do so in less than twelve hours, but he’d long since learned not to question the woman. As much as it pained him to knowingly remain in the dark about things, he accepted that she would always be an enigma.

He looked back up to see Thor and Loki watching him with strange expressions. “What was that?” Loki said.

“I’m being stealthy.”

“You’re being ridiculous.”

“That is maybe unnecessary, Tony,” Bruce said, fighting to keep the grin off his face.

Tony pouted and flopped back into his chair. “What good is trying to be covert if I don’t get to play spy?” He shook his head. He had a feeling he’d make a terrible spy, anyway. “So Bruce, are you having breakfast? That is, if Thor hasn’t eaten everything yet.”

Thor paused, his fourth slice of toast poised at his mouth. “You are lucky I have too much admiration for you to take offense at that remark.”

“And that the statement was, in fact, true,” Loki said with a smirk.

Thor frowned at Loki, which only served to raise a laugh in response, and in turn that sound brought a smile to Tony’s face. Even last year when Loki first returned to Earth things between the pair were strained, and while Tony didn’t know what their relationship had been like before, there was no doubt it had improved. It was a joy to watch. Loki couldn’t get by with only Tony on his side, especially while they were still trying to work out the teething problems in their relationship, and unless by some miracle Loki bonded with the other Avengers, Thor was the best man to fill that void.

Loki’s composed mask slid back into place when he saw Tony beaming at him, as if he was embarrassed to be seen enjoying his brother’s company so much. He still had his issues with Thor, Tony knew – the one time Loki had drunk enough to loosen his tongue he’d told Tony everything that had happened before his ill-fated attempt at world domination – and he didn’t expect total forgiveness from either of the pair, though it was plain to see most of Loki’s contempt for Thor was just an act these days.

“I should get back downstairs, actually,” Bruce said as he set his half-drunk coffee down and got to his feet. “Whenever I leave packing until the last minute I end up forgetting something.”

“What time are you leaving?”

“As soon as I’m all packed I’ll head out.”

“I suppose I should gather my things as well,” Thor said. He claimed the last slice of toast and nodded to Tony and Loki as he followed Bruce out the door.

Tony sighed once he and Loki were left alone. He hadn’t even thought about packing yet. It was no big deal if he had to come back to the penthouse to grab anything else he needed, but if the tower was compromised it would be best to avoid it altogether until the threat had been dealt with. And that threat meant the team had to be careful when they left. All of them packing their bags and heading off in the space of one day was sure to raise suspicion enough on its own; if Tony was spotted leaving with his suits that would only confirm they were up to something.

So his only option was to take the MK V, which was less than ideal since his more recent suits were better equipped and took less power to run, but it would do in a pinch. He made a mental note to start working on a more advanced travel-safe suit as soon as things were back to normal. Not that things ever seemed all that normal these days, though Tony much preferred run-of-the-mill goons to alien conquerors.

He looked up to see Loki watching him. “What is it?” Loki said.

“Just wondering how my life got so crazy.”

The corner of Loki’s mouth twitched. “You do that a lot.”

“Yeah. I never seem to come to an answer.” He gulped down the last mouthful of his coffee, waiting for Loki to finish eating before he cleared away their plates. “Come on, we better get ready. I want to get out of here before I say something I shouldn’t.”

 

They pulled up at a large house later that day, not quite big enough to be considered a mansion, but it was damn close. Hell, it wasn’t much smaller than the house Tony had grown up in. When the words ‘safe house’ came up in Natasha’s note, he had expected something a little more inconspicuous, but he trusted her judgement. He smiled at her as she greeted them at the door and he and Loki stepped inside.

The house was just as remarkable on the inside. They were stood in a two-storey hall, an enormous yet tasteful chandelier hanging from the ceiling and an impressive staircase curling upwards to their left. Tony let out an appreciative whistle as he surveyed the room, though a quick glance at Loki told Tony he wasn’t impressed.

_Of course not – the guy grew up in a freaking palace, after all._

“Leave your things here for now,” Natasha said, nodding at the pile of bags dumped on the living room floor. “We’ll work out sleeping arrangements later. Come on, the others are in the kitchen.”

She lead them through the hall to a similarly oversized kitchen, where the others were sat around the island counter while Steve made dinner.

“Hi, Tony,” he said with a wide smile, “Loki.” Loki nodded curtly in return before taking a seat next to Thor.

Tony threw himself down on the stool beside him and took a long sniff, drinking in the scent of tomatoes and garlic. “What’s cooking?”

“Spaghetti,” Steve said as he gave the sauce another stir. He had sadly decided to forego the stars and stripes apron Tony had given him for Christmas. “It’s my mom’s old recipe, though I can never get it to taste half as good as she used to.”

A sympathetic smile crept across Tony’s face at the sadness in Steve’s eyes. Tony could relate in a way, waking up to the news your loved ones were dead, but it wasn’t just his parents Steve lost. His family, his friends, his entire culture was dead and buried before Steve’s personal ice age ended. From a purely selfish point of view, though, Tony was glad things turned out the way they did. Steve was a damn good friend and ally, and it seemed the 2010’s had just as much need for Captain America as the 1940’s did.

“I’m sure it’ll taste great,” Natasha said warmly, drawing Tony’s attention back to her and the question that had been niggling at him all day.

“So how’d you swing this,” he said, “you got a secret fortune you haven’t been telling us about?”

“It’s one of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s safe houses. Director Fury gave us permission to use it until we’re sure Stark Tower is secure.”

Bruce arched an eyebrow. “S.H.I.E.L.D. can afford a place like this?”

“We’re well funded,” she said. “There should be enough room for us all here – Tony, I assume you and Loki will be sharing a bedroom?”

Tony pointedly ignored the way Clint wrinkled his nose at that. “Yeah. I bet Fury loved it when he found out we were on board.”

Natasha smirked in response, her head tilting to the side as she brought up her shoulder in a tiny shrug. “I may have neglected to mention your involvement.”

“Good plan.” And it was lucky S.H.I.E.L.D. had finally begun relocating a few days before. Without the mad rush of activity in the tower, Tony and Loki’s absence would have been noticed and it wouldn’t be too much trouble to put two and two together. “But Miss Romanoff, you won’t be Fury’s pet anymore.”

“I’ve been compromised so many times in my association with you, Stark, what’s another indiscretion?”

“Aw buck up, Nat,” Clint said as he patted her on the back, “that just makes you one of the team.”

“Actually, I think that’s just one of the perils of befriending Tony Stark.”

Tony narrowed his eyes at Steve, though he couldn’t stay mad for too long once the mouth-watering smell of spaghetti sauce wafted under his nose as Steve placed a plate in front of him. “Are you implying I’m a bad influence?”

“There’s no implication, Tony,” Clint chuckled, “just facts.”

Tony would have shot back a scathing retort if his mouth hadn’t been full of chunks of tomato and mushroom he was reluctant to waste, so he let the remark go with a smile – hopefully one that suggested Clint should keep an eye on his bow that night if he didn’t want Tony to make some helpful adjustments to it.

He glanced at Loki as the others settled down to eat. He offered Tony a smile in return, but he still held himself with more tension than usual, closing himself off from the others as much as he could while remaining in such close proximity to them. Tony barely listened to the group’s conversations, his attention focused completely on Loki. At least he seemed to be in good spirits, talking occasionally with Thor and not shooting a single glare at anyone. Loki knew this was for the best, and if he’d been able to put up with Thor and his friends for centuries, Tony was sure he could survive a few weeks with Tony and his.

Steve eyed the pile of dirty plates and saucepans with a frown when they had all finished eating. “Any volunteers?”

“Well,” said Natasha as she slid to her feet, “since Clint already knows his way around, I don’t think he’ll mind missing out on the tour.”

“How come I don’t get to give the tour?”

“You don’t have my natural charisma.” She shot Clint a sweet smile as he glared back in return and they all left him alone with his dishes, making their way back into the hall for Natasha to show them around. The grandeur of the few rooms Tony had seen carried on throughout the rest of the house, to everyone’s relief. If they were going to be spending the next few weeks in hiding, they might as well do it in style. Tony didn’t know what he appreciated more: the king-sized bed in his and Loki’s room, or the fully equipped workshop in the basement. As much as it pained him, Tony imagined the workshop would end up getting the most use.


	11. Chapter 11

The next few days passed without incident. A sense of unease still hung over everyone, but they settled into their new surroundings easily enough and gradually they began to relax. Or some of them did, at least.

“Are you sure we’re safe here?” Steve said again. Tony had lost count of how many times he’d asked that question.

He checked his watch. “Oh, look at that – 11:34. Pay up, Clint.”

Clint scowled as he dug around in his pocket and pulled $50 from his wallet to hand over. Tony really shouldn’t have been making bets – it wasn’t like he needed or even wanted the money, after all – but it was just too entertaining watching Clint lose to resist.

“What was that?” Steve glanced between them with a frown while Natasha rolled her eyes. She couldn’t keep the smile from her face, though, and Tony grinned at her in response before turning to Steve.

“I bet Clint $50 you’d ask if we were safe before noon.”

“I just want to be sure. We can’t be too careful.”

“Captain Rogers is right,” Thor said. “If our aggressors are indeed the Skrulls, our knowledge of them is woefully inadequate. We must be well prepared if we wish to face them.”

Tony didn’t particularly wish to face anyone. Sadly no-one had seen fit to consult him on that beforehand. But Thor had a point; they were at a disadvantage.

“Do we have a plan yet?” Bruce asked Steve as he scooted over on one of the living room’s plush couches for Steve to take a seat beside him. Tony had been wondering the same thing himself. As much as he enjoyed being able to talk freely again, he wanted to return home sooner rather than later.

Steve sighed and scratched his chin. “Ordinarily I’d say we should take the fight to them, stop them before they can carry out whatever it is they’re planning, but we don’t know enough to make that plan work. Unless we can find out how many we’re up against and where to find them, all we can do for now is wait for them to make their move.”

“D’you think we’re looking at a full-on invasion here?” Tony said, pushing himself into a sitting position from where he’d been sprawled across the couch to watch Steve’s reaction, but it was Thor who answered.

“I would think that most likely.” Steve nodded his agreement. “I imagine they have been observing us to see if we are capable of thwarting their plans, and I am sure the creatures Loki and I faced were scouts sent to watch us.”

“Where is Loki?” Clint interrupted.

Tony arched an eyebrow. “Miss him?” He didn’t wait to hear Clint’s comeback. “He’s in the basement.”

Out of the corner of his eye he caught Natasha and Clint give each other a look, and his stomach clenched. He knew this living situation wouldn’t be sunshine and rainbows, though he had hoped there wouldn’t be any problems between Loki and the others. It didn’t bode well that after three days suspicions were already starting to grow.

Thor must have noticed their expressions too, because he quickly spoke before the conversation could take a sour turn. “That is just his way. It is no cause for alarm. He has never been one for crowds.”

“I’ll go check on him,” Tony said. Hopefully that would be enough to diffuse the situation. To his relief, the conversation returned to their more pressing concern as Tony got to his feet and made his way out of the room.

“You’ve dealt with this before?” Clint said to Thor.

“I have. The attack on Captain Rogers was no doubt intended to strike us all down, so that we may pose no threat once the Skrulls begin their invasion. They will try to stop us again.”

Those words stuck with Tony all the way down to the workshop. It was lucky they got out of the tower when they did. If the Skrulls’ first strike put Steve in Intensive Care, he didn’t want to see what their next attempt could do. At least here the team was in a better position to figure out how to stop them without the risk of another direct attack.

He smiled at Loki as he stepped into the workshop, though if Loki noticed Tony’s entrance he didn’t remark on it. He was hunched over one of the tables, deep in thought.

“What’s up, honeytoes?”

“I’m going to kill you if you call me that again,” Loki said without bothering to look up.

“You love it.” He crossed the room to reach the table when his gaze lingered on the pages of scrawled notes under Loki’s fingers. “What is all this?”

“I had a thought–”

“Should I be worried?”

Loki ignored him and continued speaking. “I might be able to create an enchantment to reveal the Skrulls’ true form.”

“Would that help?”

“If the stories are true and the Skrulls can really disguise themselves as anything, I would think being able to see them before they launch an attack may be useful.”

“Gotcha. So what kills these guys? Computer viruses, water, germs?” Loki stared at Tony as if he’d just suggested fighting them with cream cheese. “Remind me to introduce you to Netflix once this is all over. But seriously, how do we stop them?”

“I imagine violence might do the trick.”

Tony nodded. “I can get on board with that. What do you need for the spell?”

“I’d need to make some adjustments,” he said, looking back over the notes he’d made. “There’s a book I would need from Asgard.”

“What do you need from Asgard?” Thor’s voice sounded as he stepped into the workshop.

Loki frowned at the intrusion. “What concern is it of yours?”

“I have been discussing with the others; we think it best if I return to Asgard for a short while to see if I can find any information about our enemies. I can return with the things you need.”

He smiled brightly at Loki, who regarded him for a moment, deciding whether or not to entrust him with the task, before taking another piece of paper and writing something in a language Tony couldn’t understand.

“I need this book from the library,” Loki said as he handed over the slip of paper. “I can gather the ingredients required here.”

“You expect me to search the entire library for one book?”

“No, I expect you to search the magic section for one book. It is not hard to find; search the top rows of the bookshelves and you should have it within minutes”

“Loki,” Thor said, his tone steeped in concern, “how much time have you been spending in the magic section? There is dangerous information stored there.”

Loki rolled his eyes in response, and Tony tried to stifle his smile. “I assure you, Thor, I am far more dangerous than anything you would find in the library.”

It was a pretty accurate assessment, if Tony said so himself, yet he wouldn’t be surprised if Asgard had tightened its restrictions on who could access the most powerful books in the library since Loki’s day. He could just picture Loki as a boy, sneaking into the library by candlelight to study all the books he shouldn’t. One thing he’d noticed since Loki had been living with him is how much he loved to read. It didn’t matter what; Loki soaked up the information in much the same way Tony did when he tinkered with electronics. He must have read everything Tony owned before they came back to the tower – out of boredom, perhaps, but there was no doubt Loki enjoyed being engrossed in the pages every time he picked up a new book.

Loki’s statement didn’t do much to reassure Thor, but he turned away with only a slight frown creasing his brows. “I will see you upon my return then. Try not to cause any trouble while I am gone.”

“As if I would.”

Thor shot him a look as he reached the door and Loki flashed a winning smile in return, sending Thor from the room with a sigh.

“Are you gonna stay down here all day?” Tony said once the door closed behind Thor.

“Is that a problem?”

“Not really; I think the others are starting to get a little twitchy is all.”

“I thought it would be best if I stayed out of the way.”

“Yeah, I get that. But if you want them to trust you it might help to spend a bit more time with them. Lurking down here doesn’t really inspire confidence, you know?”

Loki nodded. “It will take more than that to make them trust me. But I’ll try to integrate myself with the group.”

“Thank you, Loki,” Tony said, leaning forward to kiss him. A content little noise sounded in Loki’s throat as Tony pulled away.

“You know if I’m to spend more time upstairs that means you’ll find it harder to catch me alone.”

“We’d better make the most of this time then.” He leant back across the table as Loki did the same, meeting in the middle for another deep kiss.

By the time they joined the others back in the living room, Thor had already left for Asgard. He was gone less than a day in the end, yet it only took a few hours before Loki was on edge and he spent the rest of the day pacing up and down the room. Tony didn’t think he’d ever been so glad to get some sleep when he fell into bed that night. It was exhausting just watching Loki’s agitation grow as more time passed without Thor’s return, and at least with his arms wrapped firmly around Loki’s chest Tony could force him to keep still for a while.

Tony woke to silence the next morning; no Jarvis greeting him, no sounds of traffic outside and no-one waking him up on his workshop table to drag him to some meeting he was running late for. It was eerie, to say the least. He rolled onto his side, expecting to collide with Loki’s back any second as he continued turning until gravity took over and he flopped onto his stomach with a groan. He cracked open an eye slowly as he tried to adjust to the morning sunlight.

“Jarvis, what time is it?” he said out of habit. No answer.

“Jarvis isn’t here.”

Tony opened his eyes fully, rubbing away the last remnants of sleep as he remembered where they were, and he looked across the room to find Loki stood staring out the window. “Did you sleep at all?”

“For a while,” Loki said as he glanced back at Tony with something almost hollow in his eyes. It was a look Tony had seen too many times.

“Another nightmare?” Loki nodded, his arms folded tightly across his chest and his jaw clenched. “Bad?”

“Worse than they have been,” he said with a thoughtful frown creasing his brows. “But they’re still far better than they were before.”

“You haven’t attacked me in your sleep for a while, so I’d say they’ve improved. Come here.”

Tony propped himself up on one elbow while Loki reluctantly stepped away from the window and, as soon as he was within reach, Tony hooked a finger under the waistband of Loki’s pyjama bottoms to coax him down onto the bed. Usually when Loki had other things on his mind the last thing he was interested in was physical contact, but he didn’t object when Tony pulled him into an embrace, settling against Tony’s body and letting him kiss the tension away. Screw spending more time with the others – Tony just wanted Loki all to himself for the rest of the day. It was pretty much all he’d wanted recently, though since he and Loki hadn’t enjoyed nearly enough time in bed together in the weeks Loki had been back on Earth, Tony was going to seize every chance he got.

The moment was painfully short-lived. Just as Tony had gotten comfortable a bright light shone through the window and Loki was up in a flash. He was back staring through the glass before Tony’s brain could properly register the movement.

“He’s back,” Loki said, before charging out the door without so much as a glance in Tony’s direction. So much for their cosy morning. Tony sighed and stared up at the bedroom ceiling for a few seconds, willing himself to climb out of bed and take a shower.

Thor was in the kitchen with Steve and Natasha when Tony emerged five minutes later. “Good morning, Tony,” he said warmly as Tony stepped into the room. “Loki is downstairs if you are searching for him.”

“Thanks. How was Asgard? You find out anything?” The look on Thor’s face told them to expect bad news before he even opened his mouth.

“Sadly the All-Father’s knowledge of the Skrulls is only slightly more impressive than Loki’s and my own. As far as Asgard was aware, their race had been extinct for millennia.”

“Well it was a long shot,” Steve sighed. He smiled as Natasha handed him a cup of coffee, but his dejected expression soon returned. Cupping his chin in one hand, he stirred his drink absently until Tony spoke up.

“So we’re back to square one.”

“Maybe,” he said, “but if this spell of Loki’s will work we’ll at least be in a better position than we were. I’ll feel a lot better about facing these guys on their terms if we know who we’re fighting.”

“That shouldn’t be a problem.”

Tony’s head whirled round so fast he almost lost his balance. He’d never get used to how Loki could move silently even when having to climb stairs and open doors. One of these days Tony was going to put a bell on him.

“Hey,” he said. “The spell’s gonna work then?”

“It should.”

“You don’t sound convinced.” Loki levelled Natasha with a derisive look in return for the one she shot him as she spoke, though before Tony could step in to play mediator Loki rolled his eyes and decided to elaborate.

“Most creatures who possess the ability to shape-shift, so to speak, are actually altering others’ perception of their appearance, yet there are those who can physically change their form. Since we don’t know how the Skrulls’ abilities work, I must ensure the enchantment will cover both types of magic.”

“And a tougher spell means no guarantees,” Tony filled in.

“It means it will take time to perfect, at any rate.” Loki glanced down to meet Tony’s gaze fully, as if no-one else was in the room with them. Tony wasn’t going to admit he swooned like a schoolgirl whenever Loki looked at him like that, though it was certainly flattering to be the only thing worthy of Loki’s attention. That may have said more about Loki’s feelings towards the others than how he felt about Tony, but Tony was prepared to ignore that fact if he had to. “I’ll be away for a day or two to collect the ingredients I need.”

“Need me to go with you?”

Loki shook his head. “That won’t be necessary. I’ll see you on my return.”

“Be careful.”

“I will.”

Tony pressed a quick kiss to Loki’s lips before Loki stepped away and headed from the kitchen. The others were all watching Tony with interest when he turned back to face them.

“You really care about him,” Steve said. It wasn’t a question so much as a statement, and Tony shrugged in response, unsure exactly how to reply. Somehow he doubted his friends would appreciate his doe-eyed declarations of love, as supportive as they were.

“Yeah,” he said, sitting back down on his stool and giving his undivided attention to the untouched cup of coffee in front of him. “If that makes you uncomfortable–”

“No.” Steve shook his head emphatically as if he could make himself clearer. “We all need someone.”

Tony arched an eyebrow at that as a smirk worked its way to his lips. “Something you’d like to tell us, Cap?”

From Steve’s rapidly flushing cheeks the answer was a yes. They only darkened when he noticed everyone’s attention on him. “I’ve been on a few dates,” he shrugged. “But most people seem more interested in Captain America than who’s under the suit.”

“And that’s a problem? What woman wouldn’t sell her grandma to spend the night with Captain America? You can use it to your advantage.”

“Steve,” Natasha said before Tony could dispense any more pearls of wisdom, “do me a favour: never take Tony’s advice.”

“Don’t worry, ma’am, I don’t plan to any time soon.”

“I’m so wasted on you guys,” Tony sighed, rolling his eyes for added dramatic effect.

 

If Thor’s visit to Asgard had rendered Loki an agitated pain in the ass, it was nothing compared to how Tony was reacting to Loki’s absence. He’d been fine the first day, enjoying spending some quality time with his teammates like they always did during their rare moments of downtime, yet as more time passed and there was still no sign of Loki, Tony couldn’t help but worry. He knew Loki was more than capable of taking care of himself, but that did nothing to stop his dark thoughts multiplying and turning him into a paranoid wreck. By the time two days had turned to three, Tony was ready to lead the search and rescue party, despite the others’ well-raised point that he had no idea where to even start looking for Loki. In the end, it was only Nick Fury’s unscheduled arrival that put a pin in Tony’s plans.

And so there he was: sat at the workshop table in exile, thumbing through Loki’s book and trying his best to understand the foreign letters. Fury had probably left hours ago and the team had just neglected to tell Tony he could come out of hiding. Not that he blamed them. He knew he’d been insufferable for the last few days, and honestly, he didn’t see himself getting any better until Loki returned. If Loki returned.

Luckily Tony didn’t have to worry about that for long. Loki came tumbling into the workshop out of thin air later that day, straightening with ease and shooting Tony an effortless smile, as if he wasn’t stood before him in tattered clothes covered in dirt and what looked suspiciously like blood.

“Two days tops, huh?”

Loki shrugged. “Some of the ingredients were harder to collect than I anticipated.” As soon as he’d set the supplies down on the table Tony’s hand closed around his wrist and he dragged Loki towards the door without a word. “What are you doing?”

“We are going to take a shower. Because you smell horrific, and I’ve spent the last 56 hours thinking you were dead.”

“Do you have so little faith in me?” He huffed when Tony didn’t bother to answer, pulling him up the stairs single-mindedly. “I need to start working on the spell.”

“You can spare ten minutes.”

They ended up spending far longer than ten minutes in the shower, but Loki was hardly complaining with Tony on his knees showing Loki just how glad he was to have him back. Loki’s hands found their way to Tony’s body, trailing down from his head to grip his shoulders for support, and the sounds of splashing water around them almost drowned out Loki’s quiet moans as he reached his climax.

He pulled Tony up to claim his lips, the sheen of water covering them the only thing between their bodies as they held each other closer, until Tony’s fingers found a deep set of scratches across Loki’s shoulder blade.

“It’s nothing,” Loki said as Tony pulled back to take a look. It didn’t look like nothing, the long gashes still turning Loki’s skin salmon pink as the water washed his blood down his back, though the wounds were already beginning to close. Tony had inspected Loki for signs of injury before they stepped into the shower, but given the amount of filth he’d been covered in it’d been hard to make any out. The scratches were the only injury Tony could see now, aside from a few faint bruises, so whatever blood had been staining Loki’s clothes couldn’t have been his own.

Tony probably shouldn’t have been as happy about that as he was, yet as long as Loki was okay, Tony didn’t really care who or what he’d had to kill to return relatively unharmed. Which was perhaps a far more disturbing thought.

“Don’t you agree this is more fun than skulking in the workshop all afternoon?”

“I never said it wouldn’t be fun. Though in the grand scheme of things I don’t think it’s quite as important as finding a way to defeat our enemies. Are you going to let me get back to work now?”

“I suppose,” Tony pouted, but he let go of Loki’s arms so he could climb out of the shower. He reluctantly followed Loki, shivering as the cold air of the bathroom hit his wet skin, and once they were dressed they headed back down to the workshop together.

Tony put himself to use sorting through Loki’s supplies while Loki found the right page in his book. He didn’t know where the hell Loki had collected half the ingredients, but after giving one item a tentative sniff and almost choking on the stench he decided he didn’t want to.

“What can I do?” he said once he’d finished furiously rubbing his nose to try and get the smell from his nostrils. God, his eyes were watering, that thing smelled so bad. It was like rotting meat and filth, which, he realised with horror, it may have actually been.

“Here–” Loki tossed over bundles of shredded leaves and some kind of russet powder “–mix these.”

Tony dumped the leaves into a nearby bowl and as soon as he sprinkled the powder on top the whole thing burst into an impressive fireball. It was a good thing he’d had enough workshop mishaps to know to stand back when mixing materials or he’d have been left without eyebrows.

“Huh,” he said, tearing his eyes from the smouldering bowl to meet Loki’s surprised expression. “You had more of this stuff, right?”

“Yes... I’m not sure it’s wise to cast this spell on humans.”

Well Tony certainly wasn’t eager to be Loki’s guinea pig anymore. “What about the MK V? You could enchant the suit to see through whatever shape-changing mojo the Skrulls are rocking and when I put the suit on I’d see them, wouldn’t I?”

“It’s worth a shot.”

Loki was hard at work when Tony returned with the MK V’s case, though after more than 12 hours of cursing and failed attempts he was no closer to having cracked it. Tony’s helmet skittered across the table as Loki threw it down in frustration once again, and he rubbed at his tired eyes while a slew of colourful language passed his lips.

“Why don’t you go get some sleep?” Tony said, moving to stand behind Loki and running his fingers through Loki’s hair. “Look it over with fresh eyes.”

“I’m close, I know it.” Tony wasn’t sure how Loki could see any difference between each attempt now things had stopped catching fire so often, but then this was Loki’s area of expertise, not his. He moved his fingers up to Loki’s scalp again to repeat his actions when Loki leant back into his touch. A satisfied hum escaped him before he spoke again. “I like that.”

Tony slid his fingers back through Loki’s hair, more slowly this time, as Loki’s eyes fluttered shut and a small smile crept across his face, though he pulled away from Tony when the workshop door opened and Bruce stepped inside with a warm smile.

“I thought you guys might want some coffee,” he said, placing two steaming mugs on the table. “Any luck yet?”

Loki just continued mixing ingredients as if Bruce wasn’t there. “Not yet,” replied Tony, shooting Loki a look which he took as much notice of as Bruce’s presence. Loki did have more important things to worry about than common courtesy, Tony supposed, and he was certainly guilty of doing the same himself when he was focused on a project, though it still would have been nice if Loki tried to be polite.

At least Bruce didn’t seem to mind. He stuck around for the rest of the day, helping where he could but mostly just keeping Tony company, until finally something non-explosive happened. A pale, silvery-blue light radiated from the bowl, spreading further until it reached the faceplate of Tony’s helmet. The three of them watched in silence as the light slowly ebbed away.

“I think it worked this time,” Loki said with a self-satisfied grin, and Tony leant forward to pick up his helmet. It didn’t feel any different, didn’t look any different now it had stopped glowing – in fact, Tony would have been inclined to believe the light show hadn’t had any real effect if he hadn’t held the faceplate up to look through it and found that Loki was... not entirely Loki anymore.

He must have realised what Tony was seeing. Shocking red eyes widened as Tony’s gaze continued to travel across expanses of blue skin, following the trail of markings decorating Loki’s arms, and Loki’s thankfully still-Loki-shaped body tensed.

“Huh,” Tony managed to sound out at last.

“What is it?”

Bruce’s words snapped Tony out of his trance and he dropped the faceplate back onto the table. “Nothing,” he said quickly. “It’s just different. The spell will work.”

“How can you be sure?”

“I just am.” Bruce frowned a little in response, but he didn’t say anything. He knew to trust Tony’s instincts enough not to push the issue.

“I’ll go let the others know, if you like,” he said instead. “It’ll be a relief to have some good news for a change.”

“Thanks, Bruce.” Once he left them alone, Tony turned back to face Loki, who was still tightly coiled with tension. “So that’s what you really look like.”

“Yes.”

“You never mentioned that before.”

“Why would I?”

Tony shrugged. There were so many reasons why Loki should have shared this little detail circulating in Tony’s brain, yet he could hardly articulate any of them. “You wouldn’t want to prepare me in case I woke up one morning to find you’d turned blue in your sleep?”

“That’s not how it works.”

“How does it work?”

Loki just stared at Tony in a silent command for him to drop the subject. Ordinarily Tony would have pushed further, and a part of him still wanted to, but the wiser part honoured Loki’s request. If Loki didn’t want to talk about it he wouldn’t, and any attempt to force him to would likely end badly for Tony.

“This won’t be enough,” Loki said eventually, looking down at Tony’s helmet.

“We can figure out our next step tomorrow. Come on, let’s go get some sleep.”

It wasn’t even 6pm when Tony and Loki sank into bed, but after days without any proper rest they both needed to catch up on sleep. They were dead to the world as soon as their heads hit the pillows, and they only woke at the sound of frantic banging in the hallway.

Tony wrestled against the fog of sleep to open his eyes at the noise. His mood only soured further as he glanced at the clock – 5:17am. _This had better be good_. He really didn’t want to start his day with a murder, but he’d do it if he had to.

He shuffled out of bed and to the door, his eyes still only open wide enough to make sure there were no objects blocking his path, and he stepped out into the hallway to find Steve pounding on Clint’s door, Natasha at his heels.

“What the hell’s going on?” The others were poking their heads out of their rooms as well by this point, and Steve turned to face them all with a fretful expression.

“We’ve got trouble.”


	12. Chapter 12

“What kind of trouble?”

“S.H.I.E.L.D. moved the prisoners from the detention level during the night,” Steve said. “Twenty minutes ago they were hit; simultaneous attacks on the new headquarters and on the vans still making their way from Stark Tower.”

“Skrulls?” said Bruce while rubbing his eyes.

“It would be the opportune time to launch an attack.”

“And if they’ve been in hiding at the tower they’ll have known the move was coming. If they can shapeshift into anything they could have disguised themselves among the others in the detention level.”

“Guys–” Steve’s sharp voice cut through Bruce and Thor’s exchange and drew everyone’s gazes back to him “–let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. All we know right know is that there are criminals running lose in the city, and we need to stop them before they do any more harm than they already have. Suit up; Fury’s waiting for us.”

They all headed back into their rooms, any thoughts of sleep gone now there was finally some action, and as Steve made his way back to his own bedroom Tony threw out a hand to stop him.

“What about us,” he said, glancing over his shoulder at Loki leaning against the doorframe behind him. “Fury won’t want our help, even if he needs it.”

Steve nodded and pursed his lips in thought. “Right. There’s probably a lot of bad guys on the streets with a heck of a head-start on us – see if you can round any up before we get there.” He started to move off, but he paused as a thought occurred to him and turned back to face the pair again. “Bruce said the spell to identify Skrulls worked?”

“Yeah, if anyone’s lurking I’ll see them.” Loki was right; it wouldn’t be enough if only Tony was able to recognize any Skrulls in the inevitable chaos, especially since Tony was sure they were at the heart of this new attack, but it would have to do. It was better than nothing, at least.

“Do we know how to stop them?”

“We’re going with violence,” Tony said. “If that doesn’t work, we’ll figure something out.” They probably should have prepared for that eventuality beforehand. After Loki and Thanos, simple violence was becoming less and less effective as a plan A, and as much as that thought sent Tony’s worldview askew, it was definitely time they started thinking about how to deal with their more durable foes.

Another quick nod from Steve and he was back on his way down the hall.

“Don’t keep us waiting out there too long,” Tony called before Steve could step into his bedroom, and, with a grin, Steve saluted in response.

In just a few minutes they were all ready to move out, the other Avengers piling into a van to speed off to S.H.I.E.L.D. Central while Tony took to the skies.

“Jarvis?”

“Yes sir?”

“It’s good to hear your voice again,” Tony grinned. “Can you find any way to track down our escapees? I doubt many of them are still out in the open.”

Before Jarvis could respond, Tony caught sight of movement on the street below. Luckily with it being so early in the morning their targets would be easy to spot, especially in the fetching red jumpsuits they were all decked out in. He pelted towards the ground, aiming a low intensity repulsor blast as he drew closer and knocked the guy off his feet before he even saw Tony coming.

“S.H.I.E.L.D. prisoners are all fitted with an ankle monitor,” Jarvis said. “It may take some time to retrieve the current location of all prisoners from S.H.I.E.L.D.’s secure database.”

“While you’re working on that keep an eye out for these red jumpsuits.”

“Certainly, sir.”

Tony’s new friend began scrabbling away as Tony spoke. He managed to get maybe five feet before Tony caught up with him in a few long strides, picking him up by the neck of his jumpsuit and holding him suspended in the air while he tried to free himself from Tony’s grip. How exactly he was supposed to stop more of these guys without the others – or at least somewhere to store the people he caught – he didn’t know. He let out a weary sigh. This was going to be a long day.

“Loki, can you hear me?”

“ _Yes_ ,” Loki’s voice crackled in Tony’s ear.

“I’m on the ground.” Loki materialised in front of him in an instant, dressed head to toe in leather and metal and looking every inch the creature of legend, though it took Tony a moment to draw his eyes away from Loki’s blue skin to appreciate that. Loki raised an eyebrow when he laid eyes on Tony and his struggling captive, but he had no other reaction.

“Found yourself a new pet?”

“Yeah, can we keep him? He’s just so cute,” he said, reaching out to squeeze the guy’s cheek and earning himself a flurry of abuse in return. “And ideas how we’re supposed to keep everyone from running off again once we’ve tracked them down?”

Loki stepped towards them and Tony released his grip on the jumpsuit collar, letting Loki manhandle the still swearing and fighting escapee onto the ground where ropes that seemed to be made out of green fog wound themselves around his body before melting into his skin. He struggled against thin air for a few moments while Loki straightened and regarded him, until Loki knocked him out with a swift punch to the head.

“Was that really necessary?”

Loki shrugged, but before they could come up with a less gratuitously violent plan, Jarvis returned with the locations of the nearest prisoners and Tony took off. He rounded the buildings with little care, more focused on crossing the few blocks between him and his targets quickly than flying safely, and when he caught sight of them he found Loki had beaten him there. He lingered for a moment, watching as Loki took on two guys almost as big as Thor with ease, his fluid movements looking more like dance than violence, and satisfied Loki could handle it, Tony moved on to find the next prisoner. By the time the others arrived, Tony and Loki had a nice pile of people bound together, each and every one of them sporting a growing purple lump on their head.

The gang gathered together on the deserted street as two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents piled the unconscious prisoners into a van. “What do we know?” Tony said.

“Just about everyone is on the loose. Every agent not needed at base is out recovering them, but the longer it takes the more time they have to remove their tracking devices.”

Tony’s HUD flashed as Natasha spoke and magnified the image of one of their prisoners further down the street, but as Tony studied the image he realised something was off. “Hey Loki, you saw what the Skrulls really looked like when they attacked you, right?”

“Yes.”

“Green skin?”

Loki immediately knew where Tony was going with this. “Where is it?”

Tony was still too stunned for proper verbalisation, though he pointed in the right direction and Clint dispatched the creature with an arrow to the neck. It went down easily enough, which was a relief. At least they should be able to kill the things quickly, even if it would take an age to find them scattered across the city.

Luckily – or not, as was probably more accurate – that wasn’t a problem. As soon as the Skrull hit the ground Tony caught sight of more, still disguised as prisoners, and by now they’d spotted the Avengers.

“Guys, we’ve got more.”

“Are they all Skrulls?” Steve said as the group watched the crowd heading towards them. They were outnumbered, just barely, though they’d faced far worse odds than this and come out on top, so Tony wasn’t worried. His main concern was that there were more still in hiding.

“Far as I can tell.”

“Right, you’re our eyes, Tony – tell us where the Skrulls are and keep an eye out for more. Everyone stay on comms.”

They spread out and braced themselves as the Skrulls drew close enough to attack, fighting hand-to-hand for now, and Tony hovered above the scene searching for other Skrulls. No doubt more would be heading their way soon enough. If taking out the Avengers was the plan, there had to be more. He moved out further, scouring the next few blocks for activity, until Clint’s voice sounded.

“ _Tony_ ,” he said, “ _I can see guys in jumpsuits about three blocks east_.”

“I see ‘em. They’re human. Want me to go after them?”

“ _No, we need you here_.”

“ _I’ve got it_ ,” said Natasha, and as Tony watched a black shape charged towards the group of escapees.

It was just as well; the fight was growing less and less contained, spilling into different streets until Tony had no chance of keeping an eye on everyone at once. If it carried on much longer the morning rush hour would turn this into a nightmare. Tony was already noticing more cars on the roads, though apparently people had had the good sense to avoid these few blocks when they saw the Avengers’ presence.

“ _This isn’t working_ ,” Steve said and the Hulk roared his agreement, loud enough for Tony to hear even without his earpiece. He wasn’t entirely sure how he even heard Thor’s next words after that.

“What do you suggest?” he said as Tony came down to join the others where they’d converged.

“You, Barton and Loki stay here with Tony. You guys can do the most damage. The rest of us will do our best to keep the fighting contained to this area and drive anyone we see back to you. That means there’ll be more humans in the mix, so be sure your target is a Skrull before you take a kill shot. Our orders for the prisoners are to bring them in alive.”

“Got it,” Tony said. He didn’t really see that plan as being much more efficient, but at least if they could contain the worst of the action there’d be fewer casualties.

They all headed off in different directions; Steve, Natasha and the Hulk charging off down different streets while Thor, Loki and Clint spread out along the road that was fast filling up with more Skrulls. The reinforcements had obviously arrived. With less people to keep an eye on, Tony was able to stay on the ground and join the fighting, and he quickly put himself to use diving into the heart of the action beside Loki.

“So about those markings,” Tony said after a barely-dodged blade – though did it really count as a blade if it had grown out of a creature’s arm? – sliced at the neckline of Loki’s tunic, revealing more ridges travelling down Loki’s throat, “do they go everywhere?”

“Is now really the time to be discussing this?”

“What? I’m curious.” Loki just scowled in response and delivered a particularly forceful blow to the nearest Skrull. He was probably imagining it was Tony. In that case, the wisest option was to get out of his way, and Tony did just that.

He rose above the skirmish to check on Clint and Thor, watching as Clint fired an arrow into another crowd. Tony didn’t see what happened next, but the entire crowd collapsed, unconscious. He scanned the prone bodies, pointing out the humans for Clint to secure before he dealt with the Skrulls.

As it turned out, Clint didn’t have time to take care of their shapeshifter friends; just as he’d finished binding the last prisoner’s hands, an explosion further down the street knocked him to the ground. Tony whirled round to find the damage, his eyes widening in horror when he saw that the spot Thor had just been standing in was now a fireball.

“Thor,” he cried over Steve’s ‘ _what was that?_ ’ sounding in his ear, “you still with us?”

“ _Yes_ ,” Thor coughed, as a shape rocketed out of the flame and he landed beside Clint to help him to his feet. The bastard was barely even singed.

Tony joined them to get a closer look at Thor, making sure he really was unscathed before more Skrulls showed up. “What happened?”

“We have a few less Skrulls to battle.”

“They destroyed themselves with their own weaponry?” Loki said as he walked towards them, the entire hoard he’d been fighting crumpled in a lifeless pile. Thor nodded in return.

“There had to have been prisoners killed in that.”

Clint shrugged at Tony. “Rather them than civilians. Besides, it means less for us to round up.”

They went back to work, thankfully with no more explosions, until the flow of new enemies on the street slowed.

“ _Things look clear this end,_ ” Steve said. “ _We’re heading back to you_.” He, Natasha and a de-Hulked Bruce filtered back to their position over the next few minutes, while Tony took off to make sure no-one else was lurking. He’d be surprised if there were many Skrulls still out there, but then again if these guys were planning an invasion he supposed it would make sense if they only sent a small force to wipe out the Avengers.

“Come on, Jarvis,” Tony said, “there’s gotta be some way to track these guys. Heat signatures, funky energy traces...”

“I have been detecting some unusual radiation levels. I’m accessing the data from every lab in the city to find similar readings – I’ve found nothing yet.”

“Keep looking.” He circled over the streets, moving out further while Jarvis worked and keeping his eyes glued to the read-outs on his HUD in case they spiked. It would work searching the nearby area, but there was no way Tony could cover as much ground as he’d need to. He needed Jarvis to find something.

“There is still no sign of unusual activity elsewhere in the city, sir. It would appear the threat has been dealt with.”

“Are you sure?”

“Quite positive, sir.”

That was that then, apparently. God, Tony hoped so. He just wanted to pack up his things, return to Stark tower and climb back into his own bed, without having to worry about being spied on or any more attacks. Though even if the Skrulls were out of the picture, there was still the quite likely possibility that many of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s escaped prisoners hadn’t been recaptured.

A heavy sigh burst from Tony at that thought. _No rest for the wicked_.

“Is that all of them?” Steve asked as Tony returned to where the others were dispatching the last of the creatures.

He was about to say yes when something in the distance caught his eye. “Except for the one in front of that bank.”

Clint gave it a quick look before frowning back at Tony. “That’s a trash can, Stark.”

“No it’s not.”

He was proved right in the next moment, when Clint aimed an arrow at it and the thing resumed its normal shape to flee in the opposite direction.

“Wait,” Loki said before Clint could fire. He materialised behind the creature and pinned it to the ground as the others gathered around them. He had good timing; a set of wings had sprouted from its back and it was about to take off. “What is your purpose here?” he said to the Skrull.

It responded in a language Tony couldn’t understand. He glanced up at the others and they shot him blank looks in return, but Thor and Loki seemed to know exactly what was said. From their faces, the Skrull hadn’t been cooperative.

“Do you know who I am?” Loki leant closer as he spoke, his voice low and threatening. The creature nodded. “Then you know I can make you talk.”

He plunged a blade into its shoulder, a manic grin on his face at the screech of pain he got in response, before the thing began speaking again, more quickly this time, and when it finished Thor replied.

“Return to your people,” he said, “and tell your masters the Earth is not worth claiming as your own. Your armies will be beaten back in the attempt.”

Loki twisted the blade until the Skrull let out a cry of agreement. The sound made Tony’s stomach churn. He reached out to grip Loki’s arm, the smile thankfully dropping from Loki’s face as he met Tony’s eyes, and with a huff he removed the blade. Tony probably should have been concerned by how much Loki had enjoyed himself.

The creature scurried away as soon as Loki stood back, leaving the seven of them to survey the damage around them. Structurally, the area was more-or-less untouched, and aside from a few dented cars and the scorched site of the detonation, the street was only marred by the bodies littering it. S.H.I.E.L.D.’s clean-up crews would have the place scrubbed in no time.

From the corner of his eye Tony noticed Natasha press her finger to her ear, listening for a moment before she announced, “S.H.I.E.L.D. has retrieved all the prisoners they can find, except for our guys here. There are vehicles on the way to collect them and take us back to base for debriefing.”

“So that’s it then?” said Bruce.

Tony nodded, though he was barely listening to the conversation anymore. He had a bigger question. “What are you gonna say to Fury?”

“The truth,” Steve replied. “We couldn’t have done this without you, Tony.”

“He’s not gonna like it.”

“Maybe not. But I know we did the right thing here.” He shook Tony’s hand with a proud smile. It was a more fatherly expression than Tony had ever seen from his own dad. “We’ll see you two when we get back to the house.”

Tony nodded and the others headed off down the street to gather the prisoners scattered along the road, some unconscious, some struggling desperately against the zip-ties around their wrists. He was keen to know how many were still unaccounted for – no doubt the Avengers would soon be hearing from most of the escapees again – but if that meant he’d have to go to the team’s debriefing, he’d rather stay in the dark. Besides, it’s not like Fury would have revealed any sensitive information with Tony present anyway. He’d probably pitch a fit just hearing about his and Loki’s involvement.

Tony didn’t think he’d ever been so glad to skip out on a debriefing.

“Shall we head back?” he said to Loki as they watched the others from a distance. Loki only grinned in response and blinked out of sight. _Cheater_. Tony rolled his eyes and took off to catch up.


	13. Chapter 13

Loki was in the shower by the time Tony returned to the safe house. He contemplated joining him for a moment, but really all Tony felt like doing was crashing onto the bed and falling asleep. As he kicked off his shoes it occurred to him that he’d spent all morning on the go without any coffee – and on less than four hours sleep to boot. He’d be amazed by that accomplishment if his exhaustion hadn’t caught up with him once his ass hit the mattress.

He dropped onto his back with a muffled thump, a groan escaping him when his head missed the pillows, but he didn’t have the energy to rearrange himself. His neck wouldn’t thank him if he fell asleep like this, yet his every muscle screamed at just the thought of moving again. He could barely even keep his eyes open by this point.

“There you are,” Tony said with a languid smile when Loki stepped back into the bedroom. It felt like he hadn’t seen Loki in hours, and he supposed it was true to some extent; he hadn’t seen this Loki, the one with the pale eyes and smooth ivory skin. Loki may still have had the same voice, the same movements, the same personality regardless of how Tony saw him, but it was going to take a little while for Tony to get used to Loki’s real appearance.

“Here I am.” He crossed to the other side of the bed, his jaw clenched and tension almost palpable.

“What’s wrong?” Tony could hazard a guess, but he didn’t want to jump to conclusions before he heard it from Loki. Not that he would.

“Nothing.”

“You know it’s not a big deal, right?” ventured Tony, rolling over to face Loki. “Being a Na’vi and all. I mean, it’s a little weird, sure, but I can handle a little weirdness. Doesn’t make me like you any less.”

Loki looked back at him with a wry smirk. “It’s not like you could find someone better, anyway.”

Tony chuckled, though he was too tired to bother with a comeback. He’d let Loki have this one. He reached out to pull Loki down, and before he was even aware of Loki lying beside him he was asleep.

Their peace didn’t last long. Tony’s phone rang, painfully loud in the quiet room, and Tony dug around in his pocket to answer it with a frown.

“Hello?” he said without bothering to open his eyes.

“Tony, it’s Steve. Did I wake you?”

“Yeah, but I won’t hold it against you. You survived Fury’s wrath then?”

Steve chuckled at that. “Just barely,” he said. “He wants to see you. He’s on his way back with us now.”

“Thanks for the heads up, Steve.” Tony ended the call and shot a grimace to Loki, who didn’t look much happier about the situation than Tony was. This was not going to be good. He’d almost prefer going up against an army of Skrulls again than having to deal with Fury.

He pushed himself up off the bed and changed into some fresh clothes, darting downstairs to make himself a cup of coffee and hopefully wake up a little before Fury arrived. He’d be completely ill-prepared for meeting with Fury anyway – it’d be even worse without any caffeine in his system.

He had just finished his coffee when he heard car doors close outside and the front door opened with a quiet swoosh. Steve stepped into the hall first, smiling at Tony as he appeared in the kitchen doorway, and Tony caught sight of a shiny, bald head behind the others filtering into the house.

“Stark,” Fury nodded.

“Fury.”

He gestured for Tony to follow him and they crossed past the others, Bruce mouthing ‘good luck’ while the rest of the group wore varying expressions of concern – a fact which did nothing to comfort Tony about what was to come. Not a word passed between him and Fury until they were alone in the house’s small office.

“So what’s the damage?” Tony said, more to fill the uncomfortable silence than anything, though he still wanted to know if S.H.I.E.L.D. had managed to recover everyone.

“There’s still a lot of prisoners unaccounted for. I imagine we’ll be seeing some of them again, but most will do the smart thing and get out of the city,” Fury said as he sat down at the desk and Tony cautiously took the other seat. “Captain Rogers told me about your involvement today.”

“You’re welcome.” Whether he liked it or not, Fury knew things would have gone a lot differently if Loki and Tony hadn’t been involved. Tony expected an outburst, or at the very least a frown, for his remark, but instead Fury only smirked in response.

“You saved our asses, I’ll give you that. We owe you.” Tony might have died of shock at Fury’s words if he wasn’t too busy wondering where Fury was going with this. No way would he come to see Tony just to thank him.

“You know Loki helped too.”

“Yes,” Fury said tersely, “that came up.”

“And?” Tony didn’t expect much from Fury – he certainly couldn’t see a heartfelt admission that he was wrong about Loki any time in the future – though if he could get him to admit Loki wasn’t dangerous anymore, he’d call this a success.

“And I still think he’s a threat.” Failure it was, then. “We don’t know his endgame here.”

“What makes you so sure he has one?”

“This is a man who started a war just so we’d send him back to Asgard. If he was prepared to go that far, I don’t doubt for a second he wouldn’t be willing to seduce you for his own purpose. I know that’s not something you want to hear, Stark, but we all know what Loki is.”

Tony pursed his lips, his hands curling into fists despite his attempts to stay calm. He wanted to argue, yet what good would it do? He could defend Loki until his voice gave out and Fury would still refuse to believe Loki had changed. Besides, Fury was building up to something. Tony had thought he knew what Fury was about to suggest, for a few seconds at least, until his distrust of Loki reared its ugly head again. No way would Fury want Loki involved in any capacity with the Avenger Initiative.

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying there’s a place for you back on the team. Loki isn’t part of the deal.”

“No,” Tony said. He didn’t even need to think about it.

“Stark–”

“No. We’ve been over this, Fury. Maybe Loki isn’t begging for forgiveness, but he’s not causing trouble anymore. He’s helping to stop it.”

The surprise was obvious on Fury’s face, mixed with a huge helping of disappointment. Well he wasn’t Tony’s dad and Tony wasn’t a lovesick teenager; he didn’t give a shit what Fury thought about his and Loki’s relationship, and Tony wasn’t about to give up on Loki just because his place in the Avengers was dangled in front of him.

“You’d put him above your teammates?” Fury said, his voice full of disbelief.

“I’m not choosing between them. Loki did good today; he’ll _keep_ doing good. I’m not letting him go.”

“That’s your decision?”

“That’s my decision.”

Fury sighed and got to his feet. “I’m sorry to hear that Stark. And just know if he decides he’s got a hankering for causing mayhem again, it’s on you.”

“Are we done here?”

“Yeah, we’re done here. We’ll be seeing you, Stark.”

***

Loki stood immobile at the bedroom window, gazing out at the garden below but seeing nothing as he waited for Tony to return. His calm demeanour was not reflected on the inside; his stomach churned with nerves while paranoid thoughts haunted his mind.

There were ways he could have made himself privy to the conversation taking place downstairs, even with Thor’s presence intended to keep him from doing just that, yet between his brother’s incessant chatter and his own racing thoughts Loki couldn’t concentrate enough to use his magic. In all likelihood, Director Fury’s only purpose was to berate Tony for involving himself in the Avengers’ business, though as much as Loki knew that, he couldn’t help but think Tony was being asked to rejoin the team.

The thought filled him with dread. Tony still missed his friends – things had been better in recent weeks, yet Loki had caught glimpses of longing in Tony’s face as he listened to the others discuss the team. If he was offered his former place in the Avengers, Tony would jump at the chance. And Director Fury certainly would not invite him back if he was still with Loki.

Loki gritted his teeth as anger bubbled within him; anger towards Fury, towards Tony, towards the Avengers... anyone who would cast him out again earned Loki’s contempt. Just as he was beginning to formulate a plan of action, footsteps sounded in the corridor and Tony returned with a bright smile. No doubt excited to reveal his good news.

“How was your meeting with Director Fury?” Thor said.

“Yeah, it was all right. Could you give us a minute?”

“Certainly.” Thor smiled at Loki as he left the room, but Loki didn’t bother to return the gesture.

“What did Fury want?” he said once he and Tony were alone.

“He thanked us for stepping in and saving the day.”

There was more to it than that, though, Loki could tell. “He asked you to rejoin the Avengers?” Tony nodded. “On the condition that you left me.”

“Yes,” Tony said, stepping forward to close the distance between them. This was it, then. The apology. The goodbye. But Loki wouldn’t go quietly.

“If you think I’ll just stand idly by and let you cast me aside without fighting for you, you’re mistaken,” he started, though Tony’s smile only grew wider as Loki spoke and he frowned at Tony. “What?”

“Fury said there was a place for me on the team if I wanted it; I said no.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m kinda seeing this guy. He’s a total pain, but damn, is he a fireball in the sack. Maybe I’m crazy but I’d rather spend time with him than Fury.” Loki rolled his eyes at Tony’s unique attempt at glowing praise.

“You would choose me over your friends?” he said sceptically.

“With you I don’t have to choose anyone. We can still help the others out if they need us, and I won’t have to give you up,” replied Tony as he pulled Loki into a warm embrace. He rested his head against Loki’s shoulder for a moment before he spoke up. “So you were prepared to fight for me, huh?”

Loki rolled his eyes again, though the corner of his mouth twitched up into a smile. “I knew you would latch onto that.”

“You can’t hide it, princess; you know you love me really.”

“Yes,” Loki said, “I suppose I do.” It was something he’d been contemplating for a while. In all his years, he had never met anyone who made him feel so strongly. He still couldn’t put his finger on what exactly it was that made Tony so appealing – he was quite possibly the most annoying human Loki had ever met – though he knew he didn’t want this to end just yet.

He felt Tony grin against him. “Called it,” he said and Loki huffed in response.

“That doesn’t mean I can’t find you insufferable at the same time.”

“It’s all part of my charm.”

“So what do we do now?” Loki said, changing the subject before Tony decided to sing more of his own praises. They would have been stood there for hours had he done so.

“Now, I think we should pack up our stuff and go home. Sound good?”

Loki looked down at Tony with a smile. “That sounds great.”


End file.
